


Mating Reason

by Arathergrimreaper



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Angst and Humor, Fluff and Angst, Incest, Mating Bond, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Multi, Parental Interference, Romance, Sexual Content, Sibling Incest, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-05
Updated: 2016-01-20
Packaged: 2018-04-13 01:41:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4502916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arathergrimreaper/pseuds/Arathergrimreaper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fulfilling a(n accidental) prompt from yourotpprompts.tumblr.com. Go check them out, they're pretty cool. Basically, the prompt was this:</p><p>"Sesshomaru wants to find his one and true mate but when his mate is found it is his brother Inuyasha"</p><p>I decided to take a crack at it. Rated "E" for later chapters.</p><p>I own nothing. Not even the webspace I'm writing this on.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just to reiterate, this is an InuSess story, meaning there will be relations between (half) brothers. If that is not your cup of tea, I suggest moving along to something that is. Also, some characters might be OOC as I stopped watching the anime about halfway through a long time ago and never finished it. ._.U This does take place right after the events of the series, and, from what I've managed to glean of it, I would have been hella disappointed with it as it stands. I figure it's like this: if some of ya'll didn't like the way the story ended, maybe this will be more to your liking, if not, well, there's lots of InuYasha fanfic out there and google is your friend. Besides, I feel like there's not enough of this kind of thing for the poor, masochistic fools who enjoy it (like me), so I decided to post it here as well as my tumblr so that more people can (maybe) enjoy it. Ya'll are in for a slow, character development filled ride, so strap in. I have no idea how long this is going to be yet. I also tried to keep the Japanese terms to a minimum, mostly because I only ever watched the dubbed version and only know what most of them are because of fanfics (they may be the "proper" terms, but it still makes me feel like a weeby ass using them when I'm not certain of what exactly they mean culturally). 
> 
> Just so you know...there may be some mistakes as well. I didn't really have anyone to beta read this and was kind of in a hurry to get it done and put it up before I lost steam so yeah, there might be some typos and such floating around that I haven't caught. Feel free to let me know if you see any.
> 
> P.S. Sess Mama is fun to write.

　　It was not like Sesshomaru to feel the need for others’ company. Granted, there were not many of his kind left since the battle with the panther clan. Growing up surrounded by demons like himself only to suddenly have so few that he felt able to confide in had taken a bit of a toll on the young Lord of the West’s psyche. Still, between his last few centuries of wandering the country, gaining more power, and the steady companionship of Jaken and Rin, musing about his lack of peer presence was not something the demon lord ever felt the need to indulge in. 　

　Lately, however, the heavy ache within Sesshomaru’s chest sung to a very different tune. 　

　It had begun at the start of summer, the sleepless nights, the sudden and sharp pains throughout his body, and the longing for...something. Sesshomaru was not entirely sure what, but it had plagued him for nearly two months before he finally decided enough was enough and sought the counsel of his mother, Lady Inukimi. 　

　“Why is it you only come to visit when you require something of me? Ever hear of dropping in simply to say ‘hello’? I am your mother, after all.” 　  
　“Hello, Mother.” Sesshomaru said dryly. He had left Jaken at the gate with an express warning not to interrupt their meeting unless he favored a couple more holes in his flat face. There was no need for his retainer to be made aware of his current state. Not until Sesshomaru, at least, understood what exactly it was. 　  
　“What’s happened now?” Inukimi demanded, ignoring his attempts at placating her completely. “Has your human pet crossed over into in the next world again? I told you I would only help her once, did I－” 　  
　“I came to seek your advice, actually.” 　

　That brought the demoness up short and she paused, taking her son’s appearance in properly for the first time since he set foot on the threshold. 　  
　“You look like hell.” she said, tone flat. 　  
　“Thank you for that.” Sesshomaru came to stand before her, and Inukimi’s slim brows drew together, the only outward indication of her confusion. 　  
　“You have gotten taller. Your scent is different as well. More complex and...oh.” 　  
　Sesshomaru felt irritation spark somewhere in the vicinity of his temple as his mother－poorly－hid her snicker behind her sleeve.

   “Do you mind informing me of what exactly is so amusing? Perhaps you are unaware, but my patience has also suffered a great blow these last few moons, so if you’re quite done－” 　  
　“Oh, hush.” Face rearranging into the impassive mask Sesshomaru had inherited, Inukimi waved away his thinly veiled threat as though it were nothing more than a bothersome fly. “I’m merely a little giddy, is all. What mother wouldn’t be? You are just the right age for it too.” 　  
　“Explain.” 　  
　“Ah ah ah, you want answers? Well, I want company. Come sit with me a while, my son.” 　　

* * *

　After what seemed to be hours of idle chatter, Sesshomaru was at just about his wit’s end. 　  
　“Mother,” he finally managed to grit out through fangs clenched so tightly he was surprised he couldn’t feel them breaking. 　  
　“Hm?” Inukimi hummed, looking up from the tile game she had insisted they play. For a moment, Sesshomaru felt a sliver of guilt twist in the region of his stomach. She was honestly still very young for being the widow to a powerful demon lord and mother to another. It couldn’t have been easy, losing her mate and staying cooped up inside most of her days, guarding the Meido Stone and what was left of her ancestral lands while her only son avoided her whenever possible. Someone with more compassion would have perhaps felt sorry for her. 　

　Unfortunately, that someone was not Sesshomaru. 　

　“You said my scent has changed. There have been other changes as well.” 　  
　“Oh, that.” Inukimi snorted, returning her gaze to the board. “Yes, I imagine there would be. Maturation can be a difficult time, what little I remember of it.”  
　“’Maturation’? You speak of the period of transition between child and adult.” It was not a question. 　  
　“Naturally. Much as you try to behave as if you are already grown, you still have quite a bit of growing to do, pup.” 　  
　Sesshomaru wrinkled his nose at the old moniker. “I merely assumed you were asserting your authority when you referred to me as such, not speaking literally.” 　

　The corner of Inukimi’s mouth curved in a smirk. 　  
　“And that was your first mistake,” she said, making her move and claiming one of his tiles. “Assuming anything about me rather than just asking.” 　  
　Sesshomaru heaved a sigh. Before she could urge him to take his turn, he managed to secure the piece that had lost him his own, earning something akin to a pout from Inukimi. 　  
　“Spoilsport.” she muttered under her breath.

　“Is there anything I can do to lessen the....effects of this period?” 　  
　“Uncomfortable, are you?” 　  
　He did not meet her knowing gaze, instead focusing on the painting of his father, Toga, in his true form on the wall behind her. 　  
　“I’d be surprised if you weren’t.” Inukimi continued, taking in her son’s noticeably pinkened cheeks. “It’s not exactly pleasant getting growth spurts all over the place, I do remember that much.” 　  
　“It is not the physical changes so much as the emotional ones.” Sesshomaru admitted, eyes returning to the board just to watch his mother strike the finishing blow on their match. 　

　“I win again. Honestly, you’re terrible at this for one with such a wonderful poker face.” Inukimi announced, glowing with smugness. 　  
　“What is happening to me?” Sesshomaru asked her, feeling more than a little desperate, though he tried his best to hide it. 　  
　Inukimi saw through it instantly, but going easy on her son was not something she particularly went out of her way for. No, it was much more fun to let him figure himself out, she thought. 　  
　“You tell me.” she said, putting the tiles and the game board away neatly. “What is causing you so much distress? This is a perfectly natural process you are fighting.” 　  
　“I suppose I did not expect it to be as burdensome as it is rapidly coming to be. How long does it last?” 　  
　“It varies from demon to demon. Yours could last a much longer or a much shorter time than mine did.” Inukimi sat down beside Sesshomaru instead of across from him and leaned into his side, resting her head upon his fur. 　

　Sesshomaru let out a shaky breath. “I do not wish to feel this way any longer.” 　  
　“What way, love?” Inukimi prompted him, just barely resisting the urge to reach up and stroke his hair as she did when he came to her as a small child, upset at one thing or another. Much as she liked letting him come to his own conclusions, it gave her no pleasure to see her only son suffer. Even she could never be that heartless. 　  
　“I am not sure. It feels as though I am drowning in some sort of emotion I cannot place. I cannot focus my thoughts. Everything seems so...endless and, in a way, pointless.”  
　“What do you mean? You cannot possibly be weary of life already.” Inukimi shifted her head to regard him with a raised brow. 　  
　“I am not. That is the problem.” Sesshomaru bit out, becoming agitated at his inability to describe what exactly had made him visit his mother in the first place. It was proving more difficult to put into words than he had first thought. 　　

　“Are you bored then? No strong enemies to fight will do that. The mind begins to stagnate with no new challenges to stimulate it. I should know.”  
　“That’s closer, but not－I feel unmatched?”  
　Sesshomaru had not meant to make it a question, but it was the question, wasn’t it? Rin and Jaken had proven invaluable to him at times, but they were a human child, now being properly raised by humans, and a servant. His mother was, well, _his_ _mother_ , and only a fool would fully trust her not to meddle in some way with his life. The few other members of their clan he had any sort of connection to were either dead or he had surpassed them decades ago. Naraku, while not a companion, had been a worthy distraction up until he was slain. Kagura, a valuable source of information and a possible ally, was dead. In a manner of speaking, Sesshomaru had no one to equal him. 　

　“Ah, the Urge. I was wondering about that, but did not want to pry.” 　  
　Inukimi’s interested tone brought Sesshomaru back into the present with an unpleasant jolt. 　  
　“The what?” he demanded, meeting her glittering gaze with his own. 　  
　“Well, it’s often referred to as ‘the mating urge’, but it’s a little less romantic than everyone tries to paint it for the young and idealistic.” 　

　Sesshomaru had stopped listening. The memories of just such a thing crawling into his mind and attaching themselves like leeches to suck out any interest he might have had in the subject. 　  
　The mating urge that so many respectable demons had prattled about and spent weeks daydreaming over and planning for before the war? _That_ mating urge? The very same mating urge that had promising generals leaving their posts to satisfy it and every female within a twenty mile radius preening and displaying themselves in a manner fit for a brothel? _That mating urge_? 　  
　Sesshomaru felt sick. 　  
　“Stop turning that appalling shade of green this instant,” Inukimi’s voice once more called him back, “and you’re going to burn a hole in my floor if you keep that up.” 　

　Quickly getting his toxic claws under control so as not to upset her further, Sesshomaru gave his mother a mildly concerned look that was practically sheer and utter terror on his features. 　  
　“Really, green isn’t your color. Stop that. If you would let me finish before you go, careening blindly, into a panic, you would know that the Urge is not really so much appeased by finding a suitable mate as it is by finding, well, someone suitable.” Inukimi explained gently, finally giving into the desire to reach up and brush a lock of Sesshomaru’s hair behind his ear. 　  
　“Explain.” he said in a voice rife with stress. 　  
　“I was trying to.” Inukimi replied through pursed lips, her eyes all but flashing in the light from the oil lamps. 　

　Pinching the bridge of his nose in between his thumb and forefinger, Sesshomaru willed himself into a semblance of calm before asking her to proceed.  
　Clearing her throat with a last warning look at her son’s haunted profile, Inukimi said, 　  
　“The Urge is, perhaps, a built-in failsafe to ensure the continuation of our kind, yes. _However_ ,” she paused to look up at Sesshomaru again, daring him to try and interrupt before continuing, “this does not mean you have to go galivanting off at the sight of the first demon to catch your eye. It does not mean you are required by any law of nature to mate with them. It also doesn’t mean that you have to remain with one another for the rest of your days or any of the other silly rumors that have been spread about by rabble to encourage breeding within our clan.” 　  
　“There are so few of us, Mother.” Sesshomaru stated matter-of-factly. 　  
　“So there are.” she agreed. 　  
　“I am the Lord of the Western Lands now.” 　  
　“So you are.” 　  
　“I will be expected to－” 　

　“To the seven hells with what you will be expected to do. Did I raise a common dog that does what he’s told for the possibility of a pat on the head, or a fully-capable demon lord who makes his own decisions whether for good or ill?”  
　At her sudden intensity, Sesshomaru dropped his hand and turned his head to look at her. 　  
　Her face was as undisturbed as the surface of a hidden lake, but her honeyed eyes burned. 　  
　“Let me ask you something, do you really think I mated your father because it was what was ‘expected’ of me? Or that he mated me because it was ‘expected’ of him?” she said in a tone that was downright chilling.  
　“You had a great respect for Father.” Sesshomaru replied, unsure of where she was headed, but willing to follow for the moment. 　  
　“I still respect him.” Inukimi corrected. “Even with all he did to bring about his untimely demise, he was a very admirable demon. The reason he has so much of my favor to this day is because of just how much respect he showed to me in turn.” Sesshomaru motioned for her to continue when she paused to make sure he took it all in. 　

　“Toga had no reason to view me as his equal when we met. Dog demons we both may be, even distant relatives, but that does not an unbreakable bond form among our kind. He treated me as though it did, however. His interest in me was fueled mainly by curiosity. I felt the same way.” 　  
　“You became mates because of ‘curiosity’?” Sesshomaru asked, giving his mother a look of part disbelief and part disgust. 　  
　“Well, no.” Inukimi said, and as she hesitated in expounding upon her reasoning, Sesshomaru was baffled further by the flush rising in her delicate features. “Your father and I became mates because of something else entirely, but my point is we were companions, first and foremost. Not based out of any natural drive to be so, but simply because we found that each of us provided each other something we simply could not find anywhere else.” 　  
　She finished and looked up at her son with a particular shine in her eye. 　  
　“We mated because we wanted to and, eventually, had a pup because we wanted to. Duty was not a part of that particular arrangement, Sesshomaru.” 　

　Unsure whether her lecture had worked to alleviate his fears or exacerbate them, Sesshomaru focused his gaze down on his hands, resting as they were on his knees. He didn’t think he would ever become used to seeing two of them again instead of just the one. 　  
　“The key is to find someone you respect.” 　  
Sesshomaru did not have to look at her to know she was still watching him with that thoughtful expression of hers. 　  
　“Someone who, in whatever way, compliments your particular, ah, quirks while you compliment theirs. Respecting those differences in each other is what makes that sort of thing work well. Is there _anyone_ you respect? Aside from me, of course.” 　  
　Sesshomaru snorted and looked at the opposite wall before once more glancing down at the twin appendages emerging from his sleeves. 　　

   He thought he had lost his left arm forever. Not that it made much of a difference in his capabilities; he was still one of the deadliest demons alive, with or without it. His bastard half-brother had managed to amputate the limb upon their first meeting in over one hundred years, with a sword the half-breed didn’t even know how to properly wield, to add insult to the injury. It was in those rare moments of defeat that Sesshomaru could acknowledge the blood of their lord father did indeed run within the churlish InuYasha’s veins, however diluted with human taint it may be. Incredibly, _foolishly_ lucky in battle and with a vulgar stubbornness that had always irritated the older demon, Inuyasha was perhaps the closest thing Sesshomaru had met in regards to a match for himself, exempting their father. 　

　Forcing a particularly disturbing thought down as soon as it crossed his mind, Sesshomaru shook his head. To even consider something so repugnant as the half-breed for company－ 　  
　“No. There is no one.” he said, convinced. 　  
　Inukimi pouted, following his gaze with her own. “I see my son is no longer missing a piece. Tensaiga does not work on such things, to my knowledge.” 　  
　“I regained my arm under my own power. It emerged, holding Bakusaiga, from my body.” 　  
　“I see. Then again, you never did tell me how you lost it in the first place.” 　  
　“That is because it is of no importance.” 　

　Inukimi emitted a rude sound through her painted lips. 　　  
   “You would never allow yourself to be maimed so easily,” she said, reaching over to grasp the wrist of the limb in question in one of her own and drawing it gently across Sesshomaru’s body to study it better, “it must have been quite a battle.” 　  
　“Hardly.” Sesshomaru replied. 　

　As her fingers prodded flesh so like her own in its paleness, Inukimi recalled how unwilling Sesshomaru had been to even acknowledge the disability when he had come to her before. Her son was not the most forthcoming of demons, no, but there were few things he outright attempted to hide or ignore. He had far too much pride for petty deceit. Then again, he could often be such a fool when it came to his own limitations and the value of things outside of power. 　  
　Whomever had managed to take Sesshomaru’s arm was indeed powerful, perhaps even more so. Sesshomaru, however, seemed content to never seek out such strength for himself, which was not like him at all. Unless.... 　

　Inukimi’s eyes widened minutely and the corner of her mouth twitched at the sudden epiphany her musings had delivered her to. Sesshomaru flinched upon seeing her knowing expression, but she ignored it.

   Despite allowing a couple to follow him around recently, Sesshomaru’s intense dislike for humans matched his mother’s intense indifference to the pathetic creatures. The former lord’s penchant for them had never made sense to either demon and Inukimi was more than content for it to remain that way. Though her son’s views on certain humans may have altered slightly, it was still clear to anyone with any sense whatsoever that Sesshomaru was not overly fond of them as a species. 　

　That being said, if Sesshomaru was really being so reticent about just who managed to claim an arm from him as a trophy, it was entirely possible his opponent had been human.  
　Well, not fully. 　  
　No, powerful or not, no _mere_ human could harm Sesshomaru in such a significant way, not even a holy one. That was thanks to her line and the divine blood that had carried all the way down to Inukimi and her pup. Holy powers were still painful and oft difficult to navigate through, but not nearly as impossible for them. It would take several gifted priestesses at once to manage such a wound, especially if Sesshomaru had taken to his true form to defend himself. Unless Sesshomaru was doing his damnedest to make enemies of the humans in his lands, it just did not seem plausible. 　  
　A half-demon, on the other hand, might prove a challenge.

   Sturdier than humans, but not worthy of respect from a demon as highly classed as Sesshomaru, someone from a pure enough demon line with human parentage was more than capable of landing a few decent blows before succumbing to poison or exhaustion. That would also prove a big factor in why Inukimi could never get a straight answer out of Sesshomaru when it came to his arm. 　

   “What are you scheming, Mother?”  
　Sesshomaru’s accusation cut through Inukimi’s analysis much like his very own claws could cut through her neck and she glared up at him, annoyed. 　  
　“Now, really, why would you say something like that?” she demanded, releasing his arm as though burned, “a lady like me does not ‘scheme’, as you so crudely put it. I _plot_.” 　  
　Despite his careful regard of her, Sesshomaru allowed himself a small smile. 　

　“What are you ‘plotting’, then?” 　  
　“Never you mind. Now, tell me: This Naraku you faced off against so often, he is gone from this world, correct?” 　  
　With only a slight furrowing of his brows, Sesshomaru nodded. 　  
　“What a pity. The half-breed may have taken your arm, but such respectable power could have been an asset if you had eaten him.” 　  
　A strange choking sound started coming from Sesshomaru then. Inukimi was about to chide him when she realized it was not the sound of retching, but of poorly-concealed laughter. 　

　“And just what have I said that’s so amusing?” Inukimi asked, more taken aback than irritated at the usually too-serious demon lord’s rusty chuckles. 　  
　“Naraku was never a fair match for myself, crafty though he may have been.” Sesshomaru finally managed to explain, regarding Inukimi with something like patronizing fondness in his eyes. 　  
　Inukimi tsked and deftly reached up to pull on the shell of his pointed ear, earning her a pained grunt and a scowl. Much better. At least, it was more like the pup she had borne and raised, difficult creature that he was. 　

　“Well, excuse me for having to deduce what my own son should be _telling_ me on principle. I can’t imagine what other half-breed could have managed to damage you so severely as you don’t exactly make a habit of engaging them in regular combat.” she bit out, tugging on every other word until the ear pinched between her clawed fingers was warm and red. 　  
　Sesshomaru went rigid beside her, pain and embarrassment momentarily forgotten. Curious, Inukimi craned her petite form around to look straight into her son’s matching pair of gold eyes. He met her gaze for only a moment before allowing his to drift to the portrait of the his father once more. 　

   Oh. 　

　 _Oh._ 　

　“I always forget that you have a brother.” Inukimi said as nonchalantly as she could manage. “I’ve never even met the whelp.” 　  
　“Good.” Sesshomaru deadpanned. “It is best not to acknowledge his abominable existence at all.” 　  
　“Hmm, I used to feel that way too, but I’m not so sure anymore.” 　  
　Sesshomaru tore his eyes from the painting to glare down at her.

　“Oh, don’t give me that look.” Inukimi said, opting to study her claws lest her building triumph show on her face. “It’s obvious he has more of Toga in him than either you or I originally gave him credit for if he managed to leave you with only one arm and lived to tell the tale. You said it yourself, there are so few of us left.” 　  
　"So?” 　  
　Inukimi sighed. 　

　“ _So_ , I think I would like to meet him, after all.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo boy, this one was fun, if a little sad. I'm the gotta make you laugh, then gotta make you cry type. Inuyasha is a pain to write, btw. Also, don't be fooled by the InuKagness of this chapter. They are way better as non-romantic besties, honestly. We will definitely be seeing more of our favs in chapter three so don't worry. I should have warned ya'll, there will be low-key dog puns. It's going to be A Thing.
> 
> Just between ya'll and me, this chapter was such a dick to format. I blame sending the first part from my phone to my email and just copy and pasting it without properly setting it in my word processor. Just figured out all I did was paste it into html then rich texted the damn thing, smfh. Spent hours trying to indent and all that other fancy shit when it was literally that simple. Ugh. Hope ya'll enjoy this one all the same.

  Patience had never been one of Inuyasha’s strong suits. It did not help that ‘subtlety’ was just below it on the list of virtues he did not possess in any great quantity. Kagome had been back in the feudal era a grand total of one week and the half-demon had already started to itch from the desire to ask if she would consider marrying him. The problem was, everyone else had gotten to her first.

  Miroku and Sango shared the news of their engagement as soon as the girl had stepped down from the edge of the Bone-Eater’s Well and Kagome had twittered over them and been helping plan the ceremony ever since. If that wasn’t bad enough, Kaede took the opportunity to offer Kagome proper priestess training soon after the happy news. Inuyasha had seriously thought she would refuse it, but it was just his rotten luck that she hadn’t. She had been busy following the old woman on her rounds, learning how to treat the sick and offer holy assistance to the villagers.

  Shippo and his recent partner-in-crime, Rin, had not left Kagome’s side since she returned, all but clinging to her, as if afraid she would run back to her time and they would never see her again if they took their eyes off her. To top off the wonderful plan the universe had concocted to never allow Inuyasha a moment alone with Kagome, Koga had shown up two days after she had and staunchly refused to leave. Didn’t he have duties to attend to? A pack to lead? Apparently, potential mates took priority. Inuyasha scoffed at the very notion. Of course, if he so much as glared at the alpha wolf’s direction, he got an ear-blistering lecture on how unreasonable _he_ was being. That was, when he wasn’t being ignored for an ill child, Rin’s endless questions, or even Sango, jittery with nerves and stress, swooping in to have what Kagome called “girl talk”. The only good thing about all the added distractions being that Koga really couldn’t get a moment alone with her either.

  Feeling just the tiniest bit neglected, Inuyasha had taken to spending a great deal of his time up in the boughs of the Sacred Tree, out of everyone's way. It seemed as though life had gotten somehow busier since they had defeated Naraku and collected the remaining jewel pieces to make the final wish. Maybe none of them were really cut out for quiet, simple lives, Inuyasha mused, smiling despite the frustration he was up to his bead-collared neck in.

  Letting out a tired sigh, Inuyasha fell back on the branch beneath him and pressed an arm over his eyes to shield them. The sun was a unrelenting presence this time of day, even while above the leaves, but the warmth felt nice and made him drowsy.  
  “I think I might be part cat demon instead.” Inuyasha murmured to the empty air, already feeling himself start to doze. Strangely enough, the very tree he had been pinned to for over fifty years was one of the few places the young half-demon had ever felt any semblance of safe from a world that appeared to have determined, at his birth, he not exist in it. The Sacred Tree and the forest surrounding it were Inuyasha’s. In fact, they were the only things he could claim as truly his. Tessaiga didn’t count, seeing how it had once belonged to his father. The fire rat robes had as well.  
  The thought might have bothered him more if he wasn’t already so used to having nothing. It wasn’t as if Inuyasha needed much more than what he had naturally anyway, right? A punch first-ask questions second personality and a survival instinct an acre wide. That was all anyone needed, really.  
  Didn’t they?

  Thinking this much made his head hurt. Dealing with emotions was even worse, though, in Inuyasha’s humble opinion. At least thinking might get him out of trouble now and then. Emotions, well, they were more likely to get him killed.  
  So why was he so ready to hop right back on that merciless hell-beast and let it carry him straight into the fire of a _relationship_? He liked to think it was because he loved Kagome. At least, that’s what it felt like to Inuyasha. Then again, love was weird. It was something he had damn near died willingly for in the past. What he wasn’t quite so sure of was _why_ he cared about it so much.

  Was he scared of being alone? Well, marrying a human wasn’t going to fix that problem. The way he saw it, Kagome might live another handful of decades. That’s it. Him? Who the fuck knew? Half-demons were tricky to predict since they varied from individual to individual. He could match her lifespan or outlive it by centuries. There really was no way of knowing if Inuyasha chose to die naturally.  
  He didn’t think that path was really an option, though. He'd already had to grieve two human women he cared a great deal for and he didn’t think he could do it a third time.

  No, Inuyasha did not know why he was so determined to secure himself a future with someone who could be gray and feeble before he had so much as a single wrinkle, but he knew he needed that connection with someone. Like an anchor or, in his case, a light to guide himself by. It was far too easy for him to become like Naraku, corrupted by power and only craving more of it.

  Best not to think about that now. Or ever.

  He might as well just enjoy what was left of the day and hope Kagome would finally have some time to talk with him, privately, when he returned to the village to help bring in more things for Kaede. Why the old bat couldn’t just harangue the monk until he pitched in, Inuyasha didn’t get. The temple statues weren’t _that_ heavy.

  The only flaw in this plan was currently heading straight for the clearing of his forest, unmistakable scent carried to Inuyasha’s nose on the light breeze along with the half-demon’s name in a grating call. Sucking his teeth in aggravation, Inuyasha rolled over onto his stomach, draping himself along his branch so he could actually see the pest when he came into view.  
  Jaken couldn’t see him from where he lay, twenty feet above the ground, which was good. For Inuyasha, anyway. He could manage to take his brother’s ass-kissing little toady out and keep his damn eyebrows for a change.

  “Oh, where is that boorish creature? It’s not like I don’t have more important things I could be doing for Lord Sesshomaru today. Why he wants to see Inuyasha in the first place, I’ll never understand.” the small demon muttered under his breath, bulbous eyes scanning the area as his claws gripped the Staff of Heads a little tighter. _Inuyasha isn’t even here! Rin has been spending too much time around those deplorable humans--Lord Sesshomaru would be appalled to catch her lying this way!_ Jaken puffed up, thoroughly affronted that his former charge would even contemplate fibbing to him, while he was there on official business, no less.  
  He was so distracted by his inner tirade against humans and their tricky ways that he didn’t notice the scarlet-clad figure touching down silently behind him.

  In one swift move, Inuyasha’s hand shot out and snatched the Staff of Heads up. Unfortunately, Jaken was still holding onto it.

  “Huh? Leggo, ya little--”  
  Jaken’s voice came out warbled as Inuyasha began to try and shake him off the end, but he was able to catch some of the words flowing from the puny demon’s beak. They were not complimentary.  
  As a tiny spout of flame emitted from the male half of the staff, Inuyasha changed tactics and began winding up his arm to hurl the pyromaniac and his fancy stick as far into the other side of the forest as he could. Who cared what he was there for? If Sesshomaru had sent him to seek Inuyasha out, and not Rin, it couldn’t be for anything good. Recent truce between the two of them be damned.

  “You tell that ‘lord’ of yours: whatever it is, I ain’t interested.” Inuyasha bit out before snapping his arm forward and letting go.  
  Jaken sailed through the air in an arch, screaming all the while about how much of a “miserable half-breed” Inuyasha was until he disappeared below the canopy of the trees.  
  _Yup, through and through._ Inuyasha thought acidly. _Maybe you’ll think twice about showing up here and expecting better, then._

  Alone once more, Inuyasha contemplated returning to his perch, but knew it wouldn’t be the same since having to literally throw the damn frog out of his space. He was too riled up now. The thought that something may be wrong at the village crossed his mind, briefly, but one quick sniff ‘n’ listen told him all was well and he didn’t sense anything he or the others couldn’t handle nearby. Nope, Jaken had been there on a task. One Inuyasha did not plan on indulging.

  Cursing the snobby asshole’s unannounced and unwelcome visit anew, the half demon tossed his bangs out of his eyes, folded his arms in his sleeves, and turned on his heel to start heading back to the village. If he was lucky, everyone would be so busy with their own problems they wouldn’t question him about why he was avoiding them all. Not that he had been. Not really, anyway. It just made him feel odd, seeing everyone settling down and building lives together now that they had the chance.  
  There was no guarantee that Kagome would even agree to marriage in the first place considering she already accepted Kaede’s mentorship. There were rules against that, Inuyasha was sure. Though he’d learned it was pointless to compare the two, Kikyo hadn’t taken her affection for him lightly and had struggled with it on a regular basis. Not just due to his unconventional parentage, but because she had dedicated her life to serving others and maintaining as pure of an existence as possible to be able to do so. Maybe Inuyasha had been selfishly kidding himself the whole time he’d hoped Kagome would return to them after she had settled things in her time.

  The thought sent his mood from uncertain and slightly pissed off to downright depressed.  
  Stopping just as he was about to enter the village, Inuyasha set his jaw and turned once more, heading in a random direction. He wasn’t ready to go back yet. He didn’t think he’d ever be ready to go back if he kept it up.  
  _You’re being a coward._ he told himself, walking a bit faster. So what if he was? Miroku had him beat in scaredy-cat retreats and he never got any real flack for it. Then again, he’d actually had the guts to propose, hadn’t he?  
  Grumbling, Inuyasha whirled back around, determined to at least make some progress by asking to talk to Kagome later before taking off. He practically stomped through the underbrush, arms working at his sides, claws digging into his palms. What was he so afraid of anyway? The worst Kagome could say was “no”.

  That made him freeze again. This was turning out to be harder than he’d anticipated.

  Kicking out at a nearby shrub, which uprooted magnificently and gave him a few shallow scratches for his trouble, Inuyasha plopped himself down at the base of a tree and knocked his head back against the trunk a few times.  
  _Fucking. Half-breed. Idiot._ he scolded himself with every impact.

  He was never going to be able to do it, he decided, on the verge of hysterics. Either Kagome was going to live the rest of her life as a virginal priestess or she would accept Koga’s offer, and Inuyasha would have only him and his dragging feet to blame. Courting Kikyo had never been this hard. It had just kind of _happened_.

  Inuyasha paused in his mini-breakdown. That was right. He and Kikyo _had_ just happened. No big moments of revelation or rushing to get married. Just day-to-day encounters that had led to something special towards the end, before he.... Shaking his head to keep that old wound from opening up again, Inuyasha relaxed a bit. When he really thought about it, he’d gotten to know Kagome more than he had Kikyo just from hunting for jewel shards. Knew the girl was mouthy, naive, determined, and caring all from traveling all over the country with her. Likewise, Kagome knew him better than he knew himself. They had seen the worst and best of each other in all that time, had tested the other’s nerves and been tested. Despite all the bickering, crying, and near-death experiences, they had become pretty close. Way closer than the wolf wanted to be with her, anyway.

  Maybe, just maybe, Inuyasha was worrying for absolutely no reason.

  If that was true, he felt he might just punch something on principle. Here he was wasting so much time being a reclusive, sappy ass, when he could have been spending it with what was probably the best friend he’d ever had. Inuyasha made a private promise that he was going to stop sweating this whole marriage thing. Yes, he loved Kagome and loved the idea of getting to spend every day with her, but if he kept going the way he was, he had the nasty feeling he would just end up wrecking what they had.

  As though he had been telepathically summoned her with all his inner turmoil, Kagome’s voice called from somewhere around the treeline. “Inuyasha, where did you go? You’re not hiding out again, are you?” Inuyasha couldn’t help a snort. If only she knew.  
  “Inuyasha!” Shippo’s much higher voice rang out, making the dog demon flinch. “Maybe he’s in his tree again.”  
  “I told Master Jaken he would find him there.” Rin chimed in. “He said Lord Sesshomaru sent him to collect Inuyasha, but he wouldn’t say why.”  
  _Bastard._ Inuyasha allowed himself a low growl. As if he was some trained pet that came when he was called. He knew he’d made the right choice when he tossed the slimy toad sky-high.

  “Well, it’s a good thing they’re not fighting anymore, but I wonder what Inuyasha’s brother wants.” Kagome mused aloud, peering into the dense green of Inuyasha’s forest, hoping to catch sight of red or silver. She felt dead on her feet, what with trying her best to be an attentive apprentice to Kaede, helping Sango and Miroku with their nuptial plans, and dodging Koga’s flattering, but embarrassing attentions, Kagome was exhausted.

  Of course, none of this was helped by the person she most wanted to see disappearing the moment Kagome took her eyes off him.

   _Maybe, he didn’t miss me as much as I thought._  
  Before she could become too dispirited by her friend’s absence, a faint rustle sounded to her right and the half demon in question stepped into view looking somewhat guilty, soft, white ears twitching flat against his skull.  
  “Hey,” he grunted, fixing his gaze on a point above her left shoulder.  
  Feeling her face nearly split in two when she smiled, Kagome replied, “Hey. Where have you been?”  
  Just as he opened his mouth, no doubt to say something scathing, Rin ran over and threw her arms around his middle, laughing. She had gotten a bit taller over the course of three years, Kagome noted, comparing the two.  
  “Everyone was getting worried about you, Inuyasha, especially Kagome. Did you see Master Jaken? He was looking for you too.” Rin asked, gazing up at her honorary older brother. Inuyasha gave an unpleasant laugh.  
  “Oh yeah, I saw him, all right. Sent him right on his way, too.”

  Rin’s sad eyes tugged at Kagome’s heartstrings, but not enough for her to feel sorry for whatever Inuyasha might have done to the surly demon. Sesshomaru may have had a change of heart, but Jaken certainly hadn’t.  
  “Well, we’re all about to head to Kaede’s for lunch. You feel like joining us?” Kagome risked, watching the play of emotions on Inuyasha’s face. It was almost as if he was distracted by something else.  
  “Um, sure.” he said after a long moment, reaching down to gently pry Rin off of him. He gave the child an awkward pat on the head, making her smile as she latched onto his hand instead, pulling him along behind her and rambling off the events of her day.  
  Kagome shared a look with Shippo, who had been watching the exchange just as she had from his spot on her shoulder with a mixture of confusion and worry on his clever face.  
  “Has he been like this the whole time I was gone?” she asked him as they followed after their friends.  
  “He was mostly the same, I guess. Kept to himself a lot, but that’s just Inuyasha.” Shippo assured her, with a wave of his hand. “Now, he’s just acting weird.”

  “I wonder if it’s because of something I did.”  
  Shippo shook his head, thoughtfully. “No, I think it’s more something he _hasn’t_ done.” Kagome was about to ask him what he meant when an angry squawking from behind her brought all four of them to a halt.  
  Sliding her bow from her back and nocking an arrow, Kagome turned just as Inuyasha reached her side, flexing his claws and shielding Rin behind him.  
  “Is that--?” Kagome asked, lowering her weapon slightly as she got a better look at the thing shuffling toward them.  
  “It is.” Shippo confirmed, shielding his emerald eyes from the sun with one hand. Inuyasha swore, earning an admonishing look and a “shh” from Kagome.  
  “Master Jaken!” Rin cried, waving.

  He was a little worse for wear, from what Kagome could see, but it was definitely Jaken. Robes torn, hat missing, and leaning heavily upon the Staff of Heads, he appeared to have fared very poorly in the woods.  
  “Stop...you...worthless...I...have...a...message...” Jaken panted as he steadily made his way over to Inuyasha. When he finally arrived before the half demon, he fell to his knees, trembling as he sucked in great lungfuls of air.  
  “You still kickin’, frog?” Inuyasha asked, sounding bored.  
  “No...thanks to you. Ungrateful...mongrel--”

  Inuyasha’s foot came down hard on Jaken’s head then, driving his face into the dirt. Kagome winced.  
  “Inuyasha, come on, he’s been through enough.” she said, giving him a light smack on the shoulder with the back of her hand. “Let him up.” Inuyasha grudgingly complied, turning his back on them all with a muttered, “serves him right.”  
  Rolling her eyes at the behavior she was far too used to, Kagome crouched down to Jaken’s level. “Lord Sesshomaru sent you to ask Inuyasha to meet with him, didn’t he?” she asked, keeping her voice kind, but her bow ready. “Did he happen to say why?”  
  “Never _you_ mind, you--you--” Jaken’s angry, flushed face paled at the sound of Inuyasha cracking his knuckles beside him and his tone quickly lost its hostile edge. “He...didn’t say.”  
  “You didn’t think about, I don’t know, _asking_?” Shippo pressed, eyebrow raised sardonically.  
  “It is not a servant’s place to question his lord’s whims, merely to carry them out.” Jaken huffed, thrusting his beak in the air as he finished and giving the fox kit a withering look.

  Both Kagome and Shippo sighed in exasperation. Rin piped up, “Please tell Lord Sesshomaru Rin says ‘hello’. He hasn’t been to visit in a while.” Taking note of just how down the girl sounded, Kagome aimed a smile her way.  
  “I’m sure he hasn’t forgotten about you. Who could forget someone so completely adorable?” Rin gave a small smile in return, but it didn’t reach her eyes.  
  Feeling righteous anger bubble up at the demon lord’s neglect, Kagome turned a glare on Jaken, who had the grace to look absolutely terrified.  
  “Hey, you go tell Sesshomaru that if he wants to see Inuyasha, he can bring his uppity butt here himself _and_ see Rin while he’s at it instead of just cryptically summoning people out of the blue.” she tore into him, completely oblivious to Rin’s look of awe at her outburst and Inuyasha’s near-silent snickers.  
  Jaken gaped at Kagome, beak opening and closing comically. He finally managed to stammer out, “H-how dare you. I am the vassal of Lord--I don’t answer to humans, you pathetic, simpering fool.”  
  “Insult Kagome like that again and you’ll be answering to _me_ ,” Inuyasha’s threat earned him no more than a concerned glance, but it was clear the message had sunk in by Jaken’s once more shaky breathing.  
  “I will inform Lord Sesshomaru that the half-br--that Inuyasha, “ he corrected himself as three glares were aimed his way ( _Rin, how could you?_ , Jaken’s mind wailed at Rin’s dark expression.), “is unwilling to acquiesce to such a request at this time.”  
  “And Rin,” Shippo prompted, grinning ear-to-ear just from watching Jaken struggle to keep his composure while surrounded by not-quite-friends.  
  “I will also let him know that Rin has expressed a wish to see him as soon as he is available.” Jaken sniffed, looking put-out as he sat, arms crossed, in the dirt.  
  “Great. Thanks for being _so_ cooperative.” Kagome said, flashing her most winning smile at the demon and ignoring the dirty look he shot her way as she stood. “Shall we, then?”

  Inuyasha actually laughed, shaking his head as he turned to face her.  
  “What?” Kagome asked, prepared to be annoyed with whatever answer he supplied her with, but hopeful it was nothing, all the same. Shippo sprung from her shoulder to walk with Rin, who already appeared much more cheerful knowing her temporary guardian and travel companion might be paying her a visit soon.  
  “I just missed having you around is all.” Inuyasha told her as he started after them, smiling enough to show fang.  
  Taken aback, Kagome froze and just stared after him. _Did he really just--?_

  As she was spacing out, Inuyasha must have gotten worried and looked back to check on her, because the next second her reverie was broken by him calling back, “Hey, you planning on hanging out with Jaken today or something? What’s the hold up?”  
  Smiling at the familiar grouchiness, Kagome decided to just take it in stride. She knew even Inuyasha could say something nice though it only happened maybe once in a blue moon, but that only made it more significant when he did.  
  “Coming!” she yelled back, jogging a little to catch up.

* * *

  “I see.” Sesshomaru said, voice utterly emotionless. Jaken hated when it was like that because it usually meant his lord was not in the best of moods.  
  “Oh, please forgive me, Lord Sesshomaru, I tried!” Jaken howled, throwing his small form on the stones before Lady Inukimi’s palace and the great dog demon. “Inuyasha, though no insult is meant to your glorious bloodline, is just so completely wretched and insubordinate to his betters, my lord!”  
  “Jaken, cease your groveling at once. I never expected you to be successful on this mission.”  
  “Huh?” Jaken squeaked, lifting his head to regard Sesshomaru’s guarded features.

  “Inuyasha is those qualities and more. I knew he would not agree to meet me on my terms, but I had hoped his damnable curiosity would get the better of him. It appears, I was mistaken, however.”  
  Absolutely speechless, Jaken got to his feet unsteadily. His lord _knew_? He knew, yet sent Jaken to get pummeled, get spun until it felt as though his brain was attempting to evacuate through his ear holes, get thrown into a thorny bush just crawling with stinging ants, get nearly devoured by an especially ravenous pack of wolves and be talked down to by that disgusting human priestess? Not for the first time, Jaken wondered if these brothers were actually in cahoots to kill him in the most painful and embarrassing way possible.

  “This Inuyasha sounds stubborn.” Inukimi called, smiling from where she sat at the top of the steps.  
  “You have no idea.” Sesshomaru sighed. “You are dismissed, Jaken.” Turning to leap up the stairs, he made a mental note to give the insolent pup a good bash on the head for his trouble.  
  “What’s the grumpy face for? I am quite eager to meet the one who doesn’t allow my son to order him around.” Inukimi laughed, regarding Sesshomaru with jewel-bright eyes.  
  “I am glad you seem to be enjoying this, Mother.” Sesshomaru said, glaring at her as he strode toward the dais her throne rested upon.  
  “Stop making that face, lest your features get stuck that way.” she warned in a sing-song voice. “Besides, I see this as a perfect opportunity.”

  Sesshomaru stopped before her, his own curiosity getting the best of him. “For what, exactly?”  
  “Well, you are going to go fetch him, aren’t you?” Irked at her particular phrasing, Sesshomaru confirmed that he planned on it.  
  “Good, because I will be accompanying you.”  
  A not insignificant moment of silence fell between them. Inukimi counted down until--  
  “No, you will not.”  
  --and there it was.  
  “Sesshomaru.”  
  “I said no.”

  Inukimi blew out a breath to calm her rapidly building irritation, tossing her bangs into the air with the force of it.  
  “Why on Earth not?” Sesshomaru did not answer, but the sudden tick in his jaw told her all she needed to know.  
  “Contrary to what your father may have led you to believe, I am more than capable of taking care of myself. I may not be as strong as either of you, but I have my own methods of ensuring my safety.”  
  When her son still did not acknowledge her, the dam holding back Inukimi’s anger finally gave way.  
  “I am tired of being a prisoner here.” she roared, eyes bleeding crimson and her demonic aura rippling about her shifting form, distorting the air between them.

  Undisturbed by the sudden change in the normally playful and wise demon, Sesshomaru stepped forward and reached out to touch the side of her face with deceptively gentle, clawed fingers.  
  “Try to understand,” he told her softly, “with the Meido Stone in your possession and you being the Lord of West’s mother, you are a target for any upstart that feels they could possibly gain a name for themselves or hurt me.”  
  Power dissipating somewhat, Inukimi continued to watch him with red eyes and a snarl full of much sharper teeth than usual.  
  “Father knew this as well. This isolation was not a punishment, but a protective measure. He wished to spare you from secondary harm. As do I. Mother, please.”  
  Inukimi’s growling ceased and she closed her suspiciously wet eyes tight, gripping Sesshomaru’s wrist to ground her further.

  “I will leave at daybreak to seek Inuyasha and bring him to heel long enough to meet you, if that is what you wish, but you are to stay here. Agreed?”  
  Inukimi nodded, not trusting herself to speak as fresh tears escaped her closed lids. Sesshomaru allowed himself yet another moment of weakness and pressed his lips to the matching crescent moon on her forehead. Warm to the touch just as his own was, the marking was passed down from the celestial beings they originally descended from before integrating with demons so long ago and was a further sign of the purity of he and his mother's blood.  
  “I will leave Jaken with you, though he is a poor substitute for true company. A-Un may prove a more engaging conversationalist, at the very least.”  
  That earned him a croaky laugh, which Sesshomaru cherished for the small victory it was.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short one, but I have a reason for that. I actually cut part of this one to use at a later date (the plot was moving too quickly). Anyway, I hope ya'll enjoy this for what it is and if it seems like there's another plot thread in it...good. ;) Gods, I'm tired.
> 
> [EDIT]: Wow, the last part of this chapter was missing for quite some time. Maybe I accidentally deleted it when I was editing? Anyway, it's back now.

  Sango wanted to marry Miroku. Honestly, she did. Her feelings for him had been anything but platonic for the last few years. It was just....

  The slayer looked across the small fire of Kaede’s hut at her dear friend, Kagome. The last three years had been good to the girl, she noted. Filling up the sucking void of worry and battle-weariness chasing after Naraku so long had placed in each of them (literally, in Miroku’s case). As the young priestess-in-training broke up a food spat between Inuyasha and Shippo, Sango’s heart stuttered a little.

  Yup, the feelings she harbored for Kagome were definitely still there.  
  Cursing under her breath, Sango looked away, only to be met with her fiance’s curious stare.

  “Are you all right, Sango? You seem to have something weighing on your mind.” he asked, genuine concern lining his handsome features. Sango felt her cheeks heat at being caught ogling their mutual friend.  
  “Fine,” she croaked. Clearing her suddenly parched throat, she repeated, “I’m fine, just not all that hungry, I guess.”  
  “You’re not ill, are you?” Before she could shake her head, Miroku reached up and brushed her bangs aside, laying his palm against her forehead. This garnered notice from the others, who halted in their friendly chatter and and stared.

  “Hey, what’s up with you two?” Inuyasha was the first to break the awkward silence that had settled over them, earning an elbow from Kagome. “What?”  
  “What he means is, is everything okay?” she prompted, ignoring the half-demon’s outburst.  
  “It feels like it might be. I just thought our Sango might be coming down with something. Loss of appetite is the first sign of fever, after all.” Miroku explained, sliding his hand down to cup to side of Sango’s face, his own still worried.  
  “Really, Miroku, I’m all right. Everyone,” she turned to the room at large, “there’s no need for concern. I’ve just been a little preoccupied by the wedding is all. There’s just so much to do.”

  “I’ll say,” Shippo said, swiping the last dumpling from Inuyasha, who looked about ready to smack him, and stuffing it in his mouth before sprinting to the other side of the room, out of reach. “There’s still the clothes you’re going to wear to the ceremony to stitch, making sure the slayer’s village is up and running again so more people can attend aside from just us, and not to mention the food and celebration _afterwards_. Boy, human weddings sure do take lot of work.”  
  “Are demon weddings less complicated?” Kagome asked, turning that too-sweet gaze from Sango at last, allowing the older woman to breathe again.  
  “Fox mating ceremonies are.” Shippo informed them all, swallowing his stolen treat. “Though, I think it depends on status and convenience as well. Father said that he and Mama were sort of star-crossed, so their mating had to be done in secret, away from their families. The two factions hated each other.”  
  “You never told us that.” Miroku said, sounding interested.

  Shippo just shrugged, his tiny hands splayed before him. “Never had a reason to. Mama died giving birth to me and Father died at the hands of the Thunder Brothers. The feud never really concerned me since none of them even know I exist. Foxes are typically loners anyway, unlike wolves and dogs.”  
  As he finished speaking, he gave Inuyasha and Koga sidelong looks where they sat on opposite sides of Kagome. Koga merely snorted at the implication that he was somehow less capable than a puffball with legs. Inuyasha made a gesture that got him another elbow from Kagome.  
  “Well then, tell us, oh Loner Extraordinaire, why the fuck have you tagged along with us this whole time?” Inuyasha demanded, scooting out of Kagome’s elbowing range, but not out of her glare one, which he studiously ignored. His ears caught Koga’s snickers behind her, though. Damn wolf would get his later.  
  “I’m still just a kid, Inuyasha.” Shippo wailed, stomping his digitigrade foot on the floor.  
  “I figured that from the fact that you still _whine_ like one.” The half-demon said, not bothering to face the fox kit.  
  “Kagome,” Shippo appealed pathetically, bottom lip protruding and eyes large.  
  “Inuyasha, SIT!”

  As holy energy slammed him into the floor, Inuyasha cursed himself for having forgotten the damned beads again. Kagome had yet to take them off and three years of not being forcibly dragged to the ground every time he messed up had definitely made him a bit careless.  
  “When will ye learn, Inuyasha?” Kaede sighed, offering another helping of stew to Rin, who looked absolutely horrified by Inuyasha’s punishment.  
  “Inuyasha, are you all right?” the girl asked, lowering herself on her hands and knees to peer at his face, food entirely forgotten.  
  “Yeah, Rin, never better.” Inuyasha grit out, pushing himself upright and cracking his neck. Getting carefully to his feet, Inuyasha uttered a quick excuse about needing some air, and headed outside before Kagome could start up with the apologies again. She had “sat” him three days prior, when they had arrived back in the village, after Jaken’s odd visit. It was the first time Inuyasha could remember her ever saying sorry for doing it to him, though.

  He had been acting like a jerk, as usual, and hadn’t expected it when “SIT!” was yelled as he was leaping the short distance over the river. He’d gone down with a splash, hitting his head on a sizable stone jutting up from the water. All he could vaguely recall was Kagome, screaming like she was dying and leaning over him with a vice-grip on his shoulders. He had smelled his own blood, but there really hadn’t been much pain. That could have been because he was knocked nearly unconscious, according to Miroku, but that sure hadn’t stopped his recovery from hurting like hell. After suffering what had felt like a three-day migraine amidst an on-and-off-again crying and apologizing Kagome, Miroku and Shippo asking him how many fingers they were holding up every few hours, and a myriad of herbal concoctions that made his sensitive nose weep as Kaede administered them to him, Inuyasha was back to his old, less loopy, self. No matter how many times he brushed it off as yet another injury, Kagome had spent much of her time trying to make it up to him, which made Inuyasha feel more obligated to reassure her that it was nothing. Granted, he was a little pissed after that last one, but it wasn’t like he hadn’t dealt with it a bunch from her in the past.

  Pacing toward the boundary of the the forest of the Bone-Eater’s Well, Inuyasha inhaled the clean, crisp air and was thankful, not for the first time, that Kagome had not insisted on him living in her era. He didn’t think he could take the stench of machinery and loudness of city life, day in and day out. Nope, call him a bumpkin, but rural feudal Japan was definitely the place and time Inuyasha belonged in.

  As he took another grateful gulp of the night around him, Inuyasha noticed something that hadn’t been there before. Some kind of perfume, but he couldn’t place it. There weren’t a whole lot of flowers around the village this time of year, something Rin lamented, but Inuyasha celebrated, every time she got the urge to make him a flower crown. This scent was like the wildflowers they’d often seen on their travels. A mismatch of breeds all trying to stand out among their brethren. Complex and individual, but simplistic and all blending to make one unique smell.

  And it was coming towards him.

  Hand itching to take Tessaiga’s handle, Inuyasha stopped. He didn’t smell demon. In fact, all he smelled was flowers, but dealing with someone like Naraku on a regular basis had made him twice as paranoid.  
  Leaping up onto the nearest hut, Inuyasha crept along it until he was close enough to enter the trees without a sound. Inside the forest, the smell was stronger, but the waning crescent moon barely provided enough light for him to see by.  
  _Dammit_ , he thought, _maybe I should go back and alert the others. I can’t kill what I can’t fucking find._  
  Just as the idea crossed his mind, a flash of white on the ground caught his eye and Inuyasha dove for it, taking whatever it was down to the forest floor.

  Struggling to avoid having his face clawed by a pair of hands that were reaching for him with blunt, but long nails, Inuyasha found what the source of the wildflower scent was.  
  When he finally managed to pin down the wrists of the one beneath him, Inuyasha only hesitated a moment when he realized his prey appeared to be a young woman before leaning down to give her a proper sniff. Just flowers, nothing else. Not even her sweat was leaving a trace on her. What the hell was she?  
  “Do you make a habit of attacking and smelling women you’ve only just met or am I unique in that regard?” She asked him wryly, full, painted lips curving in a smirk that caused Inuyasha’s face and ears to burn in embarrassment. She did not appear to be concerned for her safety at all, oddly, having been caught and restrained by a stranger as she was. Her midnight hair fanned out beneath her, reminding Inuyasha of another woman he’d dreamed of having underneath him recently.

  “W-what are you doing out here this time of night?” he asked haltingly, willing the image from his mind so he could retain some of his dignity, at least.  
  Her dark eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled fully, her perfect, flat teeth on display. “I could ask you the same thing, handsome.” she said, her rich voice full of amusement.  
  Knowing he was blushing even more furiously, Inuyasha all but snarled at her, “Stop deflecting and answer the question. Why the hell do you smell so weird?”

  _That_ made her smile disappear and Inuyasha worried he had pushed too far again, but all she did was shrug one shoulder as much as she was able and looked away from him, as though offended.  
  Silently counting to ten, Inuyasha tried again.  
  “Look, I don’t mean to sound like an ass, lady,” he began, gentling his voice somewhat, “but this forest is no place for a human to be running around at night, if that is what you are. Any local would tell you that.”  
  “Of course I am human.” she sniffed, sounding hurt. “In case you can’t tell, I am not exactly from around this area. I was separated from my chaperone earlier today and wandered, lost, until I found myself in this forest where, what appears to be a demon is holding me captive and interrogating me.”  
  The last syllable of her tale ended on an aborted sob and Inuyasha felt his ears flatten in shame. Great, he’d made another woman cry in the span of two days. His mother would have scolded his ears off had she still been alive.

  Slowly, just in case she tried to retaliate for his surprise attack, Inuyasha released her arms and shifted so he was beside her, instead of straddling her midsection.  
    
  “I’m sorry about being so jumpy. When you spend most of your life under constant attack, you tend to get sort of...”  
  “Inconsiderate?” The woman asked, but not unkindly. She pushed herself up into a sitting position and Inuyasha took in her slightly disheveled appearance with interest. She wore a simple white kimono with red and orange koi chasing one another along the sleeves and the bottom edge, both of which had a smudges of dirt on them from their tussle. Her obi looked to be a darker shade of red, but shimmering gold lines of silk chrysanthemum blossoms wove across the material. Her hair, made darker by the brightness of her attire and skin, hung loose and free, brushing the grass beneath her.

  “...I was going to say, ‘over-cautious’, but yeah, your answer’s fair too.”  
  She laughed then, causing Inuyasha to startle as she threw her head back in a full-fledged cackle. “You are entertaining, if a bit simple. What might I call my would-be attacker?” she prompted him, dabbing at her eye with the corner of her sleeve.  
  “Inuyasha, and you are?” he said, not sure whether he should feel insulted by her “simple” comment or not.

  “ _The_ Inuyasha?”  
  “Uh, yeah?”  
  “You don’t understand.” she told him, eyes roving over every inch of his face, although the thought of a mere human being able to make out his features all that well in semi-darkness was laughable. “I’ve heard so much of you and your great endeavors. You’re practically a legend in my lands.”

  “Really? Why?” he asked, wrinkling his nose at the very idea of someone like him gaining that much notoriety outside of Kaede’s village.  
  “A half-demon who fights injustice and helps those who simply cannot help themselves with a ragtag group of companions, both human and demon. What’s more romantic than that?” Inuyasha nearly choked, he snorted so hard.

  “Listen woman--”  
  “Tsukiko.”  
  “--Tsukiko, I’m nowhere near as chivalrous as you’ve been lead to believe, all right?” Inuyasha said as he stood and dusted himself off. “And as for my friends, well, they had their own reasons for doing what they did too. If we happened to save someone or help a village out along the way, it was only because it benefited us to do it, got that?”

  Tsukiko’s voice was quiet enough to give him concern when she asked, “Does that mean you plan to leave a poor, lost woman in a dark, demon-riddled forest all on her own?” Looking down at her, Inuyasha noticed her dark eyes were suspiciously wet and her bottom lip trembled slightly. Panic hit him in the chest like a solid weight.  
  “Tsk, no. Come on.” he told her brusquely, reaching out a clawed hand to help her to her feet, but not missing her knowing grin as she accepted it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this took a while. I get distracted hella easily, so it's totes my bad, but yeah (got a 3DS and was working on crochet stuff). Sick Sess is difficult to write, just sayin. I didn't want to cut this one off too much and leave ya'll hanging because I fucking hate that myself but I think I might have anyway. Oops. Ah well. Here's some more for ya.
> 
> [EDIT]: I tried spacing the lines out a bit more because I noticed they're a bit hard to read. Don't know if I'm going to do it for the other chapters yet or just from this point on.

  Quelling the desire to rest for what felt like the thousandth time in the past few days, Sesshomaru could not deny the relief winding through him as he finally caught sight of his brother’s beloved village. He _never_ felt tired, regardless of how much sleep he lacked. His maturation cycle was taking a much larger toll than he had originally feared, and traveling such great distances in so short of a time was not aiding in his growing need to conserve his energy. No doubt, Sesshomaru had managed to devour twice his weight coming and going from his mother’s domain, but hunger gnawed at his insides still, forcing him to seek out and kill bigger and bigger game. It was getting to be a nuisance.

  Landing beside a pool just deep enough for his increased height, the demon lord resigned himself to bathing before heading into the territory proper. He might be eager to return to Inukimi and figure out a way to ease his suffering, but showing up bloodstained and smelling of death was simply out of the question. He only hoped he would not pass out and drown in his exhaustion.

* * *

 

  Tsukiko was, frankly, _odd_.  
  There was no other way for Kagome to put it. Ever since Inuyasha had returned with the stranded woman in tow a couple nights prior, she had done nothing but ask the half-demon questions about his life, his battles, even his mother, which none of _them_ dared to do out of respect for his feelings on the matter. That was still the least strange thing about her.

  Tsukiko’s aura was definitely human (Inuyasha had demanded Kagome, Kaede, _and_ Miroku all read her the moment they entered the hut; apparently Tsukiko’s smell was “off”), but for someone who looked only a couple years older than Kagome, she came across as frightfully mature. Not only did she chide Rin and Shippo when they got too rowdy, but she stopped Miroku in his tracks before he could even try to charm her, as he had yet to get out of the habit of doing.

  Perhaps it was just her upbringing, Kagome had tried to reason. Tsukiko admitted to being of noble stock when Kaede had inquired about those she had gotten separated from. Then again, the woman had _laughed_ when Inuyasha recounted how he literally tore Goshinki apart while under the influence of his demon blood. As if at some private joke. Kagome didn’t get it and wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to.

  Inuyasha didn’t seem like he knew what to make of Tsukiko either, sniffing at her hair and clothes when her attention was elsewhere to try and gain something from her scent. Her attention was rarely diverted from him though. It was almost like she had a schoolgirl crush. Kagome couldn’t really blame her, considering she had felt the same way not all that long ago. Three years away had given her some time, not only to get her grades back under control and graduate, but also to look at what she was feeling a bit more closely.  
  Kagome wouldn’t trade what she had with Inuyasha for the world, and the thought of being able to see him and the others whenever she wanted made her happier than she could ever say. Did she love him the way she had originally thought she did though?

  It was hard to tell. She had spent a couple nights back home guiltily pondering that very question. If there was one thing Kagome did know for a fact, it was that love came in way more forms than any of them could possibly know and her love for Inuyasha was there, if a little complicated. She didn’t think either of them were all that prepared to complicate it further by rushing into a relationship, if that was where fate was going to keep nudging them towards. Kagome figured that since the Well was letting them back and forth again, they had plenty of time to sort that all out one day at a time. Until then, Kagome was not about to get angry and ruin the rare time she got to spend with her friends over some stranger casually touching, flirting with, and being regularly smelled by the half-demon. Nope. Wasn’t going to happen.

  “Hey, Kagome, you okay?” Koga asked surreptitiously beside her.  
  “Fine.” she said through teeth that were not clenched while definitely not avoiding looking at the pair beside her.  
  “Yeah, she kind of freaks me out too, to be honest.”  
  Her own conflicted feelings momentarily forgotten, Kagome looked at the wolf demon in surprise. Keeping her voice low and thankful that Shippo and Inuyasha were being kind of loud again, she asked, “What do you mean?”

  “Much as I hate to admit it, Inuyasha’s right: She smells weird. Not bad, per se, just not how people are supposed to smell.”  
  The skin around Koga’s electric blue eyes was tight as if something more than just Tsukiko’s scent was bothering him. Kagome laid a hand on his arm and hitched a smile in place.  
  “Maybe I should be the one asking if _you’re_ okay.” she said jokingly, earning a strained grin from him.  
  “Never better. Might need to go check on Ginta and Hakkaku soon though and make sure those two haven’t fallen headlong into a pit without me or anything. We are in unfamiliar territory, after all.”  
  Guilt curled in Kagome’s stomach. The poor fool was only sticking around because of her. He’d even made his comrades and their wolves stay outside the village for Rin’s sake, as Kagome had requested.

  “Koga, you know you don’t have to--” Kagome began only to pause as a searing energy brushed her awareness. Something was coming, fast. “Inuyasha.”  
  “Yeah, I smell him. Guess he finally decided to get off his ass and--”  
  At that moment, a great splintering could be heard and the roof of Kaede’s hut crashed inward. The Lord of the Western Lands landed in a silver and red heap in the middle of them all, imprinting a crater in the floor, but otherwise, utterly still.

  The group gaped in shock, not quite believing their eyes as they relaxed from their defensive positions. Unfortunately, they didn’t have long to gather themselves as Rin ran in then, a string of fish in her hand, grinning from ear-to-ear and panting as though she’d run all the way from the river.  
  “I saw him head this way! Lord Sessho--” Her eyes fell upon Sesshomaru’s body, surrounded and half-covered as it was with debris from the destroyed roof, and her smile dropped as her excitement was replaced with horror.  
  “Rin, honey--” Kagome started to try and comfort her, but Rin had already begun screaming.

  As though they were of one mind, Sango and Kaede were on their feet and moving toward her. The exterminator had a struggling Rin up in her arms and out of the hut in mere seconds, murmuring soothing words to the girl the entire while as Kaede padded after them, wearing an expression that clearly said she felt she was getting too old for this sort of excitement.  
  Shippo was the first to break the tense silence they left in their wake.  
  “He’s not...dead...right?”

  Tsukiko made an impatient noise before crawling over to the unmoving demon on her knees to gently push back the curtain of hair hiding his face from view. Her demeanor changed somewhat when she got her first proper look at him, however, and she sounded sad as she said, “No, just...unconscious. He’s breathing, but he...he doesn’t look well at all.”

  “Hey,” Inuyasha said, hooking a claw into her obi and pulling her back beside him. His brother could be unpredictable at the best of times and the last thing Inuyasha wanted was to have to explain to Tsukiko’s family why half of her face was missing when they returned her to them. “Stay put.”

  Ignoring her thunderous expression, he carefully inched closer to Sesshomaru’s crumpled form, nodding at Miroku when the monk gestured he was going to come up to his opposite side. Inuyasha had to admit, it was surreal seeing his powerful older brother in such a state. For all intents and purposes, Sesshomaru didn’t appear to be outwardly injured at all. There were a few smears of blood near his mouth, but it smelled more like sparrow than him. Despite this, the steady energy Sesshomaru was putting off told Inuyasha that the usually stoic and perfectly in control demon was trying to heal from _something_.

 _Maybe he’s sick?  
_   The very notion was laughable, but as Inuyasha leaned over him to get a better sniff, he nearly winced. Sesshomaru’s moon pale skin glistened with sweat and there were dark, bruise-like shadows beneath his closed eyes. His breaths came shallow and quick, much like a true animal’s, claws twitching but, thankfully, not dripping any poison. Yet. 

  As far as Inuyasha knew, pure-blooded demons like Sesshomaru becoming ill was practically unheard of. Unless poisoned or completely ignoring the natural demands of their bodies such as food and sleep, it just didn’t happen, period. Sesshomaru had never needed all that much in the way of rest and he still smelled of fresh kill, so he was eating just fine. Inhaling a bit deeper, however, Inuyasha detected something about his brother’s scent that he certainly never picked up before. A slight shift in the familiar earth-scorched odor he’d come to associate with his uptight elder brother. It was like a subtle promise of danger more than an all-out assault of it. Wood smoke more than forest fire. It was not a wholly unpleasant change, if Inuyasha was being honest.

  “He is definitely alive. Any idea what might do this to someone like him, though?” Miroku asked in a stage whisper, leaning slightly over to asses Sesshomaru as well and roughly dragging Inuyasha out of his brief admiration of the other’s scent.  
  “Not a clue, but doesn’t smell like he’s hurt or nothing.” Inuyasha coughed, praying to whoever the hell was listening that his face was not as red as his robes. That had been a little too weird. What, was he going to start braiding Sesshomaru’s hair for him next?

  “Scoot over, mutt. Lemme see.”  
  Inuyasha scowled as Koga nudged him out of the way and had to bite back a growl when the wolf began his own smelling assessment. As if Inuyasha’s nose somehow had become defunct in the past ten minutes.  
_Ass._ Inuyasha settled for insulting him mentally, but only because he didn’t feel like face-planting into an already ruined floor again.

  “Hey Inuyasha, this is your brother right?” Koga finally asked, looking thoughtful.  
  “Psh, I’m surprised you know that much. What of it? We’re not close or anything."  
  “I’m asking because I thought you might know how old he is.”  
  Inuyasha was taken aback by that. What the fuck did Koga need to know Sesshomaru’s age for?

  “How the hell should I know?” he said, gesturing with his hands, “I didn’t exactly think to ask him stuff like that when he was sticking his hand through my stomach and trying to take my damn head off. Tell you what, though, you can sit up with him and have a lovely chat about how much of a bastard I am whenever he wakes up. Sound good?”  
  “Inuyasha,” Kagome said from his other side. The half-demon jumped in surprise. When had she gotten there? And without him noticing? “Be nice. Koga is only trying to help.”  
  “Well, he can ‘help’ by starting to talk sense instead of asking about the weather or some shit.”

  Koga let out an aggravated-sounding breath. “I asked, dog-brain, because it might be time for his maturation cycle to start is all.”  
  There was a beat of silence. Again, Shippo broke it.  
  “Oh, I know what that is. Sort of. Foxes don’t get theirs for a loooooooooong time, though.” the fox kit said, hopping up onto Inuyasha’s shoulder.  
  “Well, I don’t. What the hell is a ‘maturation cycle’?” Inuyasha demanded, glancing at Shippo.  
  “Could it have something to do with coming-of-age?” Miroku asked, looking between the pair of the as if afraid he was going to have to break up a fight.

  “That’s exactly what it is.” Koga replied. “I know dog and wolf demons go through their first one after about three centuries, but it varies. You might not even have one, mutt, so I wouldn’t stress about it.” "  
  “What, just because I’m of mixed blood?” Inuyasha scoffed, crossing his arms and glaring at the wolf, who looked unfazed.  
  “Well, humans age differently from us, don’t they?” Koga said, matter-of-factly. “You might have even gone through human maturation instead. You won’t know until you hit three hundred, the way I see it. To be honest, you really don’t want them. They suck.”  
  “Have you had a cycle already, Koga?” Kagome asked, curious.

  The alpha shook his head. “I watched packmates deal with it growing up, sometimes for months on end, and they described it as painful and inconvenient as all hell. I’ve got another couple of decades for mine and I am _not_ looking forward to it.”  
  “Sounds like periods.” Kagome said out of the corner of her mouth, looking sympathetic.  
  “You never did explain what that was that day.” Inuyasha reminded her.  
  “No, I said ‘don’t worry about it, it’s a girl thing’. There’s a difference.”

  “Perhaps,” Tsukiko chimed in from behind them, causing them all to jump, “we should be focusing on the matter at hand? Inuyasha, your brother obviously needs help.”  
  Inuyasha huffed, but turned to look at her head on, much as every instinct in him screamed that turning his back on Sesshomaru, even in the demon’s weakened condition, was a terrible idea.  
  “I’m sure he’ll be fine once he wakes up. Back to his oh-so-perfect, assholish self before we all know it.” he told her with a shrug.

  Tsukiko looked as if she was trying not to laugh at his choice descriptions, but composed herself enough merely to smile and suggest, “That may be true, but he will owe you if you assist him, won’t he? Wouldn’t _that_ be worth the trouble?”  
  Inuyasha’s ears twitched in consideration of her words and his friends gazes all slowly turned to him.  
  “Koga, Shippo, I’m going to need you to tell me everything you know about maturation cycles.”

* * *

 

  Sesshomaru awoke to the murmuring of voices. He felt sore all over, despite the soft surface beneath him, and everything seemed worryingly muted. At least his exhaustion had abated somewhat, due to his impromptu hibernation. His hunger, however, had not. Every deep breath brought him only the overwhelming stench of humans with the odd, sharp tang of demon. Despite the increase of saliva in his mouth, he didn’t think he could bring himself to indulge in either.

  Sesshomaru had never been one for consuming humans, contrary to what his mother had believed about his allowing two human children to accompany him. They did not possess the most appetizing of smells nor tastes at the best of times and were notorious for avenging their own kind even if they did not share blood. More trouble than the effort was worth, in the mind of the demon lord. Besides, Sesshomaru knew even an entire village of the creatures would not be enough to sate the beast that seemed to have taken up residency in his belly. Cannibalism, Sesshomaru personally felt, was simply beneath a demon of his caliber.

  A low, canine whine escaped him as his stomach cramped and the voices nearby ceased. Sesshomaru had not cared what they were saying before, but as a disturbingly familiar one began to speak to him directly, coming closer all the while, he cursed himself for not paying more attention to them.  
  “Hey, you finally awake? You owe Kaede a new roof, jackass.”  
  Ah, of course. How could he have not recognized it sooner? That particular blend of human and demon that assaulted Sesshomaru’s senses every now and again belonged to none other than the living black mark on their father’s near-spotless legacy: his damnable younger brother, Inuyasha.

  Opening his eyes, Sesshomaru took in what he could of his surroundings in the low light. He lay curled on his side on a bed of straw and furs in what he assumed was one of the humans’ households. It was truly modest in size, but at least it appeared to be clean. Glancing upward out of the corner of his eye, Sesshomaru noticed a hastily patched hole in the ceiling and with a body-sized dent in the floor beneath it. Had he fallen _through_ the house instead of in front of it? It was entirely possible considering he had been trying to aim while already slipping into slumber.  
  The footsteps announcing the half-breed’s approach slowed and finally stopped just out of his range of vision, making him instantly on guard.

  “Are you just going to--” Inuyasha began huffily, but Sesshomaru cut him off with a growl. It was more instinct than anything that made him release such a low, throat-tearing sound, but he was glad the other seemed to pick up on his utter mistrust of his taking such a deceptive position.  
  Going quiet once more, Inuyasha slowly came into view, shuffling sideways so his back was to the wall even as he leveled a glare on the elder demon, who carefully pushed himself upright. The room spun for a moment, but realigned quickly enough for Sesshomaru to glare right back even as his belly rumbled, empty once more.

  “So, they weren’t just telling tales. You really are going through one of those cycle things, aren’t you?” Inuyasha asked, nose twitching only the barest amount as though he were attempting to be subtle about scenting the situation. Had he lapsed any more in his control, Sesshomaru would have laughed, it was such pathetic endeavor.

  Opting simply not to answer the question, he dragged his gaze toward the wall behind his head to see that his armor was resting against it. While the thought of being undressed in any capacity by anyone made a wave of disgust roll through him, Sesshomaru knew he would have awoken much more stiff if he had been allowed to sleep with it on. Mokomoko lay curled about him, it’s plush softness a familiar comfort Sesshomaru was grateful for as he sunk his fingers into his fur absently.

  “Are you even awake? You look like you’re spacing out.” Inuyasha said, sliding Tessaiga out of place on his hip so he could sit, cross-legged, against the opposite wall. “Don’t you dare fall back asleep either. It’s been two days, and Kaede and the others’ been staying with someone else because of you, so you need to wake the hell up already.”

  “Your voice is irritating. Be quiet.” Sesshomaru said.  
  “Bite me.” Inuyasha snapped.  
  “If you continue being such a nuisance, I just might.”

  Sesshomaru looked over to gauge the reaction his words had elicited and nearly did bark with laughter at the sight of Inuyasha leaning farther away from him with a stricken expression.  
  “Gods, you _are_ moody. I wish I had one of those came-ra things Kagome is always going on about. No one will ever believe me about this.”  
  Sesshomaru would have replied that he most certainly was not ‘moody’, as the half-breed put it, had his stomach not taken that exact moment to announce its vacuous existence once more. Loudly.  
  “Hungry, huh?” Inuyasha had the indecency to sound and look very smug about the fact. Sesshomaru had the wild desire to put his fist through his face.

  “This is not a social visit.” he said instead, wondering if he would be able to stand, but not wanting to make a spectacle of himself trying in front of the other.  
  “I’ll say. You show up after months of not checking in on your ward--who fucking missed you by the way, you heartless bastard--and throw yourself right through Kaede’s house, because you’re a growing mess that can’t take care of himself. Fucking tragic, really.”

  “Perhaps I will still bite you after all. Through your useless throat would be a lovely start.” Sesshomaru said, allowing himself to sound the least bit wistful. He did feel a pang of guilt about Rin, but he _was_ trying to wean the girl off his presence. She was a human that deserved to be around and accepted by others of her kind, not a demon pup. The sooner she moved on from him and Jaken, the better, even if the very notion made Sesshomaru’s chest feel as though it was being crushed by a boulder.

  “D-don’t change the subject,” Inuyasha stammered, eyeing the demon lord warily and tightening his grip on Tessaiga. “If you’re really that famished, the villagers have offered up a cow or two for you.”  
  “That is...generous.” Sesshomaru observed, knowing he would never willingly partake of anything offered by humans.  
  “Feh, don’t let it go to your head. They’re only doing it to get the frigging Lord of the Western Lands out of their village quicker seeing how you’ve been here far longer than they’re comfortable with. You want anything else, you’re going to have to catch it in the forest.”

  So that was the other shoe. While it didn’t particularly hurt him in any way, Sesshomaru was still tempted to raze the dirty little hamlet to the ground. Ungrateful vermin.  
  “It was not my intention to be here any longer than I had to be to collect you.” he admitted with a disinterested shrug, drawing his hair forward over his shoulder to assess the damage to the silver mass. A few split ends had definitely been obtained, but it wasn’t the end of the world. The tangles, however, had to be dealt with, posthaste.  
  “Yeah, about that. I’m not going anywhere with you, especially if you’re not even going to tell me where--okay, what the fuck are you doing?” Inuyasha demanded, eyebrow twitching as it had a habit of doing when he was particularly annoyed.

  “Basic grooming, half-breed.” Sesshomaru replied, running his claws through his mane until his fingers snagged and he had to gently tug the strands apart. Smoothing out the section the best he could without a comb, he released it and pulled another free. “I can tell by looking at your hair that you are not familiar with the concept, however.”  
  “I know what it is, dick. What I meant is, why are you doing it? No one here to impress except me.” Inuyasha said.  
  “I do not have to ‘impress’ _anyone_ , least of all you.” Sesshomaru stated flatly, not even looking up from his work.

  “Fuck, forget it. Like I said, I’m not going anywhere with you, so--.”  
  “Your compliance is not needed. You _will_ accompany me back to my mother’s palace before she gets the idea in her head to meet you herself. That I cannot allow under any circumstances.”  
  Inuyasha was silent for so long that Sesshomaru finally looked over, only to see his sibling staring at him, jaw dropped.

  “While I’m certain the flies appreciate the consideration you have for their homelessness, I’m not sure you’ll appreciate their taste.” Sesshomaru said, giving up on making his hair any less fluffy for the moment.  
  “Huh?” Inuyasha asked, dazedly.  
  “Shut your mouth and quit gaping like a fool.”

  Inuyasha’s mouth clicked shut and he scowled as though upset at himself for actually obeying.  
  “Your mother? Like, the woman our old man was actually mated to?” he prompted, ridiculous ears swiveling atop his head.

  “The one and same, yes.”  
  “The demon that birthed... _you_?”  
  “That would make her my mother, yes, and why are you referring to me in such a manner?” Sesshomaru asked, eyes narrowing.  
  “Oh, no reason,” Inuyasha said, looking nonchalant. “I’m sure she’s nice and warm and doesn’t want to cause immediate death to everything that isn’t a human girl named Rin.”

  “If it eases your mind,” Sesshomaru said coldly, “Mother and I are not very much alike at all.”  
  Inuyasha cocked a brow. “Really? Somehow, I find that hard to believe. The apple has to fall from some tree and if the old man wasn’t it--.”  
  “She takes pleasure in simple things. In many ways, she is ignorant of the world and of just how vulnerable she is.” Sesshomaru cut him off, staring directly into his younger brother’s golden eyes, a mirror of his own. “Father was a flawed being that she loved, regardless. Due to my own underestimation of her observational skills, she acknowledges you as an actual threat to my life and wishes to meet you in person.”  
  There. Sesshomaru had been as honest as he felt like being with the suspicious whelp so maybe he would be less--

  “What makes you think I want to meet someone who, and I quote, ‘acknowledges me as an actual threat to _your_ life’? For all I know, the bitch wants to skin me alive for nearly slaughtering her only son. I don’t actually have a death wish, you know.”  
  Ignoring the “bitch” part of that,--it wasn’t as though it was not an accurate descriptor--and the “slaughtering” part--because that was a vast overexaggeration of what had actually happened--Sesshomaru pressed, “My exact thoughts...at first. She was further impressed by you refusing my summons via Jaken, however. I believe she somehow considers you to be my...my equal.”

  What he and Inukimi had discussed regarding his father came floating back to him. Sesshomaru’s mother was not the strongest of their breed, no, but Toga had viewed her as an equal all the same. He saw her potential as a mate. Perhaps even as a mother to his pups. They had been together for many years before his father’s folly with Izayoi all under their own steam and among many other possible suitors prior to the war. Against all odds, they were an envious pair.

  As a result of their kind’s lowered numbers, it had become an increasingly common practice for parents to help their children seek out mates if a desirable one could not be found in a certain amount of time. Usually, it was agreed upon beforehand when the parents would be allowed to interfere, but Sesshomaru and his mother had never made any such agreement, having been around much longer than the tradition had. Also due to having so few dog demons left, mating within one’s own bloodline and sex was almost inevitable unless every male of age was to take several mates to make up for the gap in the ratio. While not nearly as feral as wolves, dog demons were much too territorial and possessive for something that extreme.

  If Inukimi had decided to take matters into her own hands and “help” ease Sesshomaru’s maturation cycles, then Inuyasha, half-breed or not, was very likely a candidate in her eyes.

  Feeling foreign but unmistakable panic setting in, Sesshomaru flashed to a standing position, only to nearly swoon from the too-swift motion.  
  “Hey, what the fuck are you doing, idiot? You’re going to--” Inuyasha had gotten to his feet as well and was reaching for him, but Sesshomaru snarled and batted his hands away, forcing himself a couple of steps toward the door despite the black spots dancing at the edges of his vision. His heart hammered in his ears and he couldn’t catch his breath. His chest was aching again.  
  “Sesshomaru, sit down.” Inuyasha ordered, voice sounding very far away. What--oh. His hearing had cut out. Why did it feel like he was falling again?

  The next thing he knew, Sesshomaru was staring up at Inuyasha crouched over him, something like worry in the set of his jaw and the intensity of his glare. “Stay. Fucking. Put. I’m going to go get you something to eat. _Don’t move, you hear_?” he stressed through bared fangs, looking the more likely of the two of them to sink said fangs into flesh with intent to kill.  
  Sesshomaru opened his mouth to reply, but his throat was too dry to get the words out, so he merely nodded, placing a hand over his aching eyes. The sound of cloth against skin and pounding footsteps announced Inuyasha’s rapid departure out of the hut and Sesshomaru found he really couldn’t move if he wanted to, he felt so weak. Weaker even than he had been as a pup, taking his first steps in his condensed form.

  How had he allowed himself to fall into such a sorry state? He was aware that most demons chose to hole up either with family or mates during cycles so they would have ready assistance if their symptoms kept them from maintaining their health. All Sesshomaru had that he trusted that much was his mother and he could never impose upon her in such a manner in good conscience.

  It was as if he had tried to do everything backwards instead. _Instead_ of resting, he sought Inuyasha to bring to his conniving mother. _Instead_ of gorging himself on the fruits of the forests to replenish all the energy he had been steadily losing for weeks as his body grew, Sesshomaru resided in a too-small human dwelling that he had apparently crash landed into. _Instead_ of seeking a mate to help him weather the proverbial storm, emotionally and physically, Sesshomaru pretended that he was as he always was: Independent and untouchable.  
  The idea of mating bothered him most of all. Mating came with certain expectations. Expectations Sesshomaru had no plans to meet or exceed.

  With a great sigh, Sesshomaru turned his head to peer at the makeshift nest he had been resting on just moments before. Idly, he contemplated crawling back into it. A vision of Inuyasha’s displeased face flashed in his mind’s eye and Sesshomaru allowed himself a smirk. It would be worth it just to annoy the half-breed and establish his capability all in one fell swoop, but the mere thought of moving was painful. There was nothing for it, he would just have to wait until after he choked down what Inuyasha brought him, then make his attempt. He just hoped whatever it was was bloody.

 Swiping his tongue over elongated fangs and placing a hand over his cloth-covered stomach, which had started gurgling, Sesshomaru hoped it was _very_ bloody.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 　　Holy balls, this took forever. Life kind of got in the way, but also this was just a really hard chapter for me since I haven't planned any of this shit out in advance so you and I are learning what the plot is doing together, dear readers. Poor writing strategy? Yes. Fun writing strategy? Also yes. If it seems like the tags have been changing a lot and getting people's hopes up, that is largely due to my not knowing what I'm doing yet and changing my mind a bunch. Also, I never know whether to tag relationships if it's like a "relationship" relationship or the characters flirt or admit there are feelings involved, so there's that.  
> 　　  
> 　　Recently found out I got things wrong about miko too. Whoops, my bad. Whelp, this is how we grow and learn, right? By making hella mistakes. I will aim to do better in the future. Also, ya'll might see some typos and grammar mistakes that I will do my best to correct if I catch them. I do not have a beta reader, so if you see something wonky, do let me know. :) Now onto the weirdness.  
> 　　  
> P.S. Perfectly okay if ya'll know who Tsukiko is too. That will just feed your angst when the characters don't at important moments. Muahahahahahaha.

  “Lovely night, isn’t it?”  
  Kagome started with a yelp, placing a hand to her fluttering heart as Tsukiko stepped into view beside her. Kagome had been having trouble sleeping again, like every night since she’d returned, and had thought some fresh air would help. Tsukiko was the absolute last person she expected to join her.

  “It’s definitely a good one for star gazing, that’s for sure.” Kagome replied, a little shakily.  
  “Oh, did I frighten you?” Tsukiko asked, slim brows drawn in concern as she turned to look at her. “My apologies. I sometimes forget how quiet I can be. Mother often called me her ‘little rabbit’ before her passing.” Her smile was pleasant, but sad.  
  “No, no, it’s fine.” Kagome assured, waving it off with her free hand. “I’m sorry about your mom though. Was it, um, sudden?”

  “In a manner of speaking.” Tsukiko said, lifting her face to the sky. “She died while bringing my brother into this world. He was not an easy baby to bear so she was very ill off and on while carrying him.”  
  _Wow. I can’t imagine how I’d feel if Mom went through all that with Sota and...and died._

  Kagome cast a glance at Kaede’s hut. Inuyasha had gone over a while ago to check on Sesshomaru, having heard him waking up, and they hadn’t seen hide nor hair of the half-demon since. Even though she hoped they were actually getting along, Kagome couldn’t help but worry.  
  “Has something occurred between those two?” Tsukiko asked quietly. Kagome looked to see she was staring at exactly the same point she had been.

  With a nervous laugh, she said, “What hasn’t, really?”  
  Tsukiko’s piercing gaze shifted to her and Kagome only just resisted the urge to take a step back.  
  “I mean, Sesshomaru and Inuyasha fought a lot in the past. I don’t know the whole story, but Tessaiga sort of made it worse for a while.” she tried to explain, feeling a little bad for spilling even more of her friend’s history to the strange woman who had taken such a shine to him. Something about Tsukiko just seemed to inspire truth to come shooting out of her mouth for whatever reason.

  “Inuyasha says he didn’t really see Sesshomaru much before, but after he came looking for their father’s sword, we crossed paths with him all the time and he was always ready to fight him to the death.”  
  “I see.” Tsukiko said, sounding exasperated more than intrigued. “Truly, they are siblings.”  
  “Siblings don’t usually try to kill each other on a regular basis, though.”  
  “You’re a bit naive, aren’t you?”

  There it was again. That note of superiority and secret knowledge Tsukiko practically resonated with. She may very well have had a point, but Kagome refused to give it to her. Just who did she think she was?  
  “They don’t.” Kagome insisted, trying and failing, she was sure, not to glare at her.  
  “You’ve siblings then?” Tsukiko asked. Her tone carried no hint of real interest and she did not take her eyes off Kaede’s hut.  
  Grinning triumphantly, Kagome said, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. A younger brother.”  
  “Cherish him,” Tsukiko told her, something unsettling slipping into her usually calm and quiet voice, “you never know when he might decide that you are just in his way and he would do best to get rid of you.”

  Kagome stared at her openly in shock. Even in the feudal era, who actually _said_ things like that?  
  Tsukiko glanced over at her and a pink tinge appeared on her cheeks. Kagome figured it must be as close as the woman ever came to looking properly ashamed.  
  “My apologies again. Our family is a bit...”  
  “Back-stabby?” Kagome asked.  
  “Ambitious.” Tsukiko corrected, a wry smile curling the corners of her mouth. “With good reason, of course, but I should not be troubling you with such things. What happened to that one companion of yours? The man in furs?”

  What, was she going to start in on Koga next if Inuyasha didn’t begin showing some interest soon? Tamping down on her protective ( _not possessive_ , she vehemently told herself) impulse to lie, Kagome replied, “Koga had to go and make sure his pack mates are all right. I told him it might be best if they go home for a while since there’s really no place for them to stay here and they probably need him, but I doubt he’ll listen.”

  Tsukiko said nothing for so long, Kagome began to think that perhaps she had only asked to change the subject of before, but eventually she said delicately, “He is very fond of you.”  
  “I know.” Kagome groaned in frustration. She leaned back against the hut, hugging herself and staring down at her sandals miserably.  
  “You do not feel the same? Or is it because you feel it would be inappropriate?” Genuine curiosity laced Tsukiko’s question and Kagome laughed humorlessly.

  “I don’t really know. I always thought I would get married, eventually,” _Just not to Koga,_ she silently added. “It seems like there’s just so much going on now and I’ve been trying to work some things out since I came back through－” _Ssh, dummy, you can’t just start telling everyone about the Well and how you’re from the future because Naraku’s gone_ she scolded herself. People would start thinking she’s a witch or something. At Tsukiko’s questioning look, she held her hands up in front of her and quickly said, “I was away for a while is all and now that I’m back it feels like I need to catch up a little. Know what I mean?”

  “No.” Tsukiko replied. “However, I do trust that you need time that the－he is a wolf, correct?－is just not giving you. Perhaps telling him he’s attempting to make your decisions for you would prove effective.”  
  Kagome shook her head. “I don’t think he’s trying－Inuyasha, where are you going?”

  Inuyasha came to a halt before them at Kagome’s innocent questioning, looking somewhere in between panic and aggravation in what little light there was to see him by.  
  “Sesshomaru tried to walk around and nearly passed out, the dumbass. He’s got to eat.” the half-demon bit out. “I’m going to try and hunt something since he’s too hoity-toity to eat what humans give him. What’s the point in making him owe me if he’s going to try and starve himself to death?”

  “How considerate of you, Inuyasha.” Tsukiko said, a mischievous expression overcoming her graceful features and honey dripping from her words. “Lord Sesshomaru must think himself quite fortunate to have an attentive and caring sibling such as you by his side.”

  Fighting down a blush when she picked up on Tsukiko's subtle little jab at her, Kagome chanced another look at Inuyasha, who bore an expression of absolute incredulity, his cheeks noticeably darker than before.  
  “How do you figure－? Whatever. Don’t let him hear you say that crap. He’d try to kill me on principle. What are you two doing out here, anyway? You’re usually in bed, asleep, way before now.” he said, ears twitching impatiently as though he were already listening for creatures to attack. For all Kagome knew, he was.

  “Shows what you know.” she said, pride making her stand straighter as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. “I pulled so many all-nighters for finals and still managed class in the morning. That was all on only four hours of sleep too.”  
  Inuyasha folded his arms in his sleeves and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, but you don’t have any of those finals here. What you _do_ have are priestess duties and a friends’ wedding to help plan and whole bunch of other things you’re going to need to be up by dawn for.”

  “What about you then? Going to sit up with Sesshomaru all night?” Kagome shot back, barely resisting the urge to stick her tongue out at him.  
  “Tch, hell no. I don’t need as much rest as you do, though.” Inuyasha bragged, smirking. “I’m just surprised that you’ve managed to corrupt poor Tsukiko here with your rebellious ways. Get to bed, woman, before you start looking like Kaede.”

  Of course, Kagome’s body would decide to yawn right as she’s about to retort that she’s not tired.  
  “See? You better check for gray hairs in the morning.”  
  “Inuyasha－” Kagome said warningly.

  “Nope.” he said, stepping toward her. He placed a hand on the back of her head to pull her close enough to plant a kiss on her hair before spinning her by her shoulders and gently guiding her to the door of the hut. “Get some sleep, for crying out loud. Everything’s going to be the same in the morning and everyone’s still going to be there, depending on you.”

  Kagome paused just as she was about to step inside. The way he phrased it, it was almost as if he _knew_ the reason she had had so much trouble falling asleep at night. It wasn’t some sudden fear of the dark or even the memories of Naraku’s calculated and unexpected attacks. Kagome had been terrified of waking up back in her own room in modern day Japan, unable to get back down the Well, never knowing if she was going to see any of them again. She was scared of wondering, but always hoping otherwise, if everything had been just a lucid dream. She was terrified of losing them all again. Permanently.

  “What, you need me to come tuck you in now or something?” Inuyasha asked voice low so as not to wake anyone else, but still plainly amused at her behavior.  
  Spinning on her heel, Kagome threw herself at him, hugging him so tight her arms hurt.  
  “Woah, hey, what brought this on? Was it something I said? Shit, c’mon, Kagome, it’s okay.” he said, hugging her back despite his obvious distress at her shaking and sobbing.

  Kagome couldn’t stop though. The flood gates were open and she just had to ride it out. Muffling her cries in Inuyasha’s chest, she did. She cried until she was exhausted. Until the only sounds she could make were pathetic tiny hiccoughs. Until her eyes hurt, but her heart no longer did. At least for a while.

  “Feel better now?” Inuyasha’s words were hushed as though he were scared to break the tenuous silence that had settled between them.  
  Not trusting herself to speak, Kagome nodded, sniffling.  
  “Wanna tell me what that was all about?”  
  She shook her head.

  Inuyasha sighed. “Figures wolf boy wouldn’t be here when you actually need him, huh?”  
  Kagome did hit him for that, but it was more of a weak tap on his shoulder than the punch she’d intended it to be.  
  “I told him to go. He needs to spend more time taking care of his pack instead of worrying about me.”

  Inuyasha snorted at that even as he rubbed soothing circles over her back. “Like that’ll happen any time soon. You get in too much trouble.”  
  Choosing to ignore the ‘trouble’ comment, Kagome asked, “we’re still in the doorway, aren’t we?”  
  “Yup.”  
  “We should move.”  
  “Uh-huh.”

  “I don’t think I can walk anymore. I’m really tired.” It was as if the sleeplessness of the past few nights had finally caught up to her and Kagome was finding it difficult to even stand on her own. Moving seemed nearly impossible.  
  “That’s a problem.”  
  “I will help her to bed, if you wish.”

  Both of them jerked in surprise and looked around at the forgotten Tsukiko standing beside them, hiding her teasing smile behind a koi-patterned sleeve.  
  “I do seem to be apologizing a lot tonight.” she said, not sounding the least bit remorseful. “Forgive me. I did not want to intrude on a private moment between friends. Or are the pair of you to be wed? I never thought to ask, but your interactions suggest something...more intimate.”

  Kagome was happy to note that she was not the only one blushing, though, it didn’t make her own embarrassment diminish any. “No, we’re not really－um, no.” she said, voice hoarse.  
  “Yeah, uh, what she said.” Inuyasha confirmed. He quickly nudged her toward Tsukiko as though to punctuate his point.  
  “Oh, well, that is unfortunate to hear.” Her tone was more amused than anything, but she accepted her human parcel without complaint, allowing Kagome to get a death grip on one of her hands to support herself.

  “Sorry about this.” the girl mumbled, doing her best to avoid looking at Inuyasha while also not laying her full weight onto Tsukiko.  
  “Oh, please,” Tsukiko snorted, already guiding Kagome inside, “you’re nothing compared to the amount of times I have had to help carry my father to his bed. He was always a bit too fond of the sake, though he could never hold any of it very well, I’m ashamed to admit.”

  Inuyasha watched them enter the darkened hut, voices dropping to barely there whispers as Tsukiko regaled Kagome of her father’s drunken exploits. He couldn’t help a fond shake of his head. Tsukiko was definitely a strange one, from her wildflower scent to her dark sense of humor, but Inuyasha had started to like her. Trust her, even. The mere fact that she was getting along with Kagome and willing to help her when he or Sango couldn’t didn’t lose her any points either, in his book.

  Figuring he better get started if he was going to track down a substantial haul that night, Inuyasha lifted his nose to the air, scenting for the best place to start. Picking up a faint trace of nighttime fauna, he took off for the trees.

  The twisted shadows of the darkened forest were as familiar to him as the patches of sunlight shining through the canopy during the day. It was almost relaxing, getting to run at night without anyone telling him they had to stop and make camp or having to concern himself with Naraku and his monstrosities leaping out of the underbrush. The sounds of nocturnal life surrounded him, punctuated as they were by the air rushing past his ears and the creak of the branches beneath his feet. Inuyasha could not remember when he had felt so at peace.

  _Probably right before I was pinned to that tree._ he thought, sobering at the memory. It was a definite improvement over the heart-grinding agony and betrayal he’d felt before Kikyo had been forced to die a second time. He still did his utmost to bury it and his feelings right along with her though.

  Inuyasha shook his head to clear it as he finally got close enough to hear prey. It wasn’t the time for ruminating if he actually wanted to bring something back with him for his trouble. It had been so long since he had any reason to hunt, what with Kagome and Kaede supplying him with most of his meals, that Inuyasha couldn’t help but worry he might be a little rusty.

  Tracking animals wasn’t nearly as difficult as actually catching the damn things. Especially such creatures as deer. They were smarter than people gave them credit for and with twice as many instincts. If they heard so much as a leaf drop at his approach, he was going to have to give chase. Not that Inuyasha minded a tussle if it came down to that, but he’d gotten to the point where he clawed them to ribbons when he only intended to drop them. Unless he rode them down and snapped their necks, which, with does and fawns, was a simple task. Stags, on the other hand, could very well take his eye out or gore him. Some of them had nearly succeeded when he had been much smaller and more desperate for food.

  He wasn’t hunting for himself this time, though. He was hunting for Sesshomaru. A sworn enemy. Well, Inuyasha supposed, he wasn’t really much of an enemy anymore. More of a on again-off again ally, that Inuyasha wasn’t entirely sure he could trust. Just leaving his brother alone in the village while the others were sleeping was enough to have him slowing to a stop, considering going back to wait until morning to hunt.

  Surely, Sesshomaru couldn’t be as far gone as to not be able to wait that long?  
  The image of the demon lord crashing through Kaede’s roof, followed closely by one of him dropping like a stone to the floor mere moments ago flashed across Inuyasha’s mind. In all his years of knowing him, Inuyasha had never witnessed Sesshomaru being, well, _weak_. While a sadistic part of him was thrilled and wanted to tease him relentlessly for it, the rest of him felt as though the world had been flipped upside down. Sesshomaru never needed him for anything before besides Tessaiga, yet here they were, Sesshomaru resting in Kaede’s damaged hut while Inuyasha stood in the middle of the forest, looking for something to feed His Royal Bratness.

  Then there was the reason he was there in the first place. Why the hell was Sesshomaru’s mother so interested in Inuyasha all of a sudden? For years, no one on either side of his family gave a damn about his whereabouts, his health, or him. Not enough to seek him out and pick up the slack when his mother passed and he was left alone. Or before, when the pair of them were rejected pretty much everywhere they tried to call home and made to leave almost as soon as they arrived if they wished to avoid confrontation and the abuse hurled at them at every turn. Shippo was wrong: Inuyasha had very much been a loner for most of his waking life and with good reason.

  Before he reached the spot his nose was leading him to, a bolder smell than deer reached Inuyasha’s nose and caused his heart to skip a beat.

  He came to a halt on a branch thicker than his torso, sniffing frantically. There was a trace of air-burning energy on the wind and it was coming from the direction of the village.  
  _Shit. What now?_ he wondered. It wasn’t as though they had never been attacked in the dead of night before, but ever since the disappearance of the jewel, the lower level demons had kept a respectful distance.

  The scent wafting toward Inuyasha in that moment, however, spoke of anything but “lower level”. In fact, it would seem that Sesshomaru had transformed. For what purpose, Inuyasha did not want to know, but he decided it would be better for him to head back than risk his brother going on the warpath in a village of sleeping humans and his friends.

  Picking up on the scent of a rabbit snuffling around in the clearing below, Inuyasha pounced upon it, twisting its head around until it went limp in his grasp. It was small, but it would prove better than nothing if he had to distract Sesshomaru from him for a moment to get the upper hand.  
  At least, that was what he had believed until, halfway on the run back, the warm, meaty bouquet of fresh blood caught him in the nose.

  _Gods, who the fuck did he get?_ Inuyasha's speed increased with his heartbeat, and he upset a nest of birds as he shot through foliage and leaped over branches. The blood didn’t smell familiar like Kagome or Kaede’s, but the thought that someone he was meant to be protecting could be suffering at the hands of a demon as cold and cruel as Sesshomaru gnawed at his oxygen-deprived insides as he pushed himself to go faster. 　　

* * *

 

  The world appeared in brief flashes of lucidity before vanishing into savage hunger and rage once more, with Sesshomaru only vaguely aware that he had reverted to his true form in his sleep.  
  The Lord of the West curled around himself, doing his utmost not to rise to his massive paws and devour every living thing in sight. This was especially difficult considering his transformation had demolished the remainder of the hut he had once rested in and all the smells he had been struggling to suss out before had begun to assault his, once more, sensitive nose. The scent of warm, easy prey was strongest and Sesshomaru was beginning to lose the battle of instinct and reason.

  None of it was helped by the bloodied hands that had been pressing raw meat to the fur around his maw since he awoke.  
  “Eat. It’s not poisoned. You _must_ eat it.” A calm, but firm voice hissed above him, easing a scrap－venison, if Sesshomaru’s tastebuds were to be believed－in between his saber-like fangs.

  Scenting only himself, fresh kill, and an unnatural amount of pure demonic energy in the air, Sesshomaru slowly lifted and turned his head to eye whatever it was. In between his fluctuating awareness and the insistent pawing at his lips to get him to open his mouth enough to toss more food in, it was impossible to tell who was forcing him to swallow pieces of the animal that lay, mouth-wateringly flayed open from chest to groin, beside them. All the demon dog managed to make out in a world of moon-silvered brown was a human-shaped blob of white and red that smelled of sweetness and burning atmosphere.

  “Sesshomaru, hurry up and swallow, but do try not to choke.” his unknown aide said, reaching over with pale limbs to tear another strip off for him. “He’s going to be back any minute, we don’t have much time. Eat, I said!”  
  The command spurred Sesshomaru into action and he managed a few awkward swallows in his dazed condition, opening up for more without prompting. The moment the flesh eased into his eager stomach, the beast of his appetite was freed and he began to snap the meat up from the hand that offered it, nearly taking a finger or two in his enthusiasm. The pieces became chunks which became whole sections of deer carcass that Sesshomaru was ripping into and gulping down, unaided.

  As near-starving, animalistic hunger morphed into something more manageable and less of a drain on his logic, the great dog looked up from the remains of a stag, licking blood from his chops, to see he was, indeed, alone.  
  That was, of course, until a winded Inuyasha came hurtling out of the forest, and skidded to a stop beside his tail, drawing Tessaiga without so much as a greeting. Sesshomaru did not miss the rabbit he held by the ears in his other hand and briefly entertained the idea of dessert before once more focusing on his brother, who looked a combination of livid and confused.

  “You－what－you－I don’t even－” The half-demon attempted several times to, no doubt, begin hurling verbal abuse and vulgar insults, but to no avail. Sesshomaru, feeling much more like his old self with a fuller belly for his body to focus on, gave his tail a dismissive swish and yawned hugely, already bored with his younger brother’s posturing.

  “Hey, don’t－don’t you yawn at me, ass－asshole. What the fuck happened?” Inuyasha demanded, sticking Tessaiga’s blade into the ground to rest against it as he caught his breath. “One minute, it smells like you’re...about to wipe this village off the map, the next you’re...trying to look all cute and innocent. Why the hell are you in...this form? What’s with all the blood? Is that－fuck, it’s all just deer? Are you...fucking serious right now?”

  Cocking his head to the side at the “cute and innocent” comment, Sesshomaru merely shrugged. The best answer he could hope to give in a form that he could not utilize actual speech in.  
  “Well, change the fuck back before someone wakes up to take a leak or something and sees you. People around here are already terrified of you. Don’t need to make it worse for yourself.” Inuyasha’s eyes darted about the darkened village as though the locals might have already begun sharpening their scythes and lighting their torches. Honestly, why he insisted on living in a place _he_ didn’t even feel safe in, Sesshomaru would never comprehend.

  He began nibbling on the bones before him, choosing to just ignore the pest until he went away.  
  “Hey, I’m talking to you, kibble-for-brains.” Inuyasha said, leaping onto Sesshomaru’s furry side to glare at him properly, sword resting on his shoulder.  
  Perhaps the first proper meal he had had in weeks made Sesshomaru entirely too optimistic; Inuyasha never just went away. What the devil was ‘kibble’?

  Huffing out a breath, Sesshomaru raised his head to regard the younger demon and allowed a short growl to rumble up out of his throat.  
  “Grr, grr, I don’t give a shit. How did you manage to hunt,” Inuyasha paused to count the spines, “ _eight_ fully grown deer when you couldn’t even stand an hour ago? Would you turn back and answer me, dammit, I don’t actually speak dog, you know.”

  It was Sesshomaru’s turn to pause, in the middle of a carefully articulated whine and ear flick, no less. All of their kind could understand one another’s body language easily. Perhaps it was because Inuyasha had not been raised around other dog demons as he had? He would have probably felt sympathy for the arrogant pup if it weren’t for the fact that the very nature of his very existence had been the reason for his not understanding in the first place.

  Settling for a more human gesture to shorten their conversation somewhat, Sesshomaru shook his head back and forth.  
  “‘No’? ‘No’ what? ‘No’, you’re not turning back or－?”  
  Sesshomaru patiently nodded.  
  “Why the fuck not?”

  The unfortunate, and slightly embarrassing, truth was, he couldn’t. Not for a while, anyway. This was his natural form and, while he often had enough strength and control to keep it locked within until he needed it, it was the form that he returned to when his reserves were near empty as they were. The deer had helped him mentally, but it would be perhaps a full day of hunting before Sesshomaru possessed enough energy to seal his true nature once more.

  Trying to convey such a concept to a half-breed, unwilling to understand anything he attempted to tell him even when he _was_ speaking plainly, however, was not going to go well.

  Sesshomaru tried looking down and pawing at the ground.  
  “Wha－? You scared or something?” Inuyasha asked, clearly not getting the hint. Shaking his head swiftly from side to side, Sesshomaru did the motion again.  
  “Yeah, what is that?” Inuyasha sounded like he was becoming just as frustrated as his brother.

  Deciding there was nothing else for it, Sesshomaru summoned some of the energy he used for changing back to his usual form. It did not come as easily as it should have, but he was able to churn up a wind strong enough to blow his and Inuyasha’s hair about before the power dissipated, leaving him panting and ready to sleep once more.

  “You can’t change back, can you?” There was barely any inflection in his voice, but Inuyasha still managed to sound disappointed somehow.  
  Sesshomaru whined in response. It was certainly not his proudest moment, but, for perhaps the first time in his long life, he lacked the power to switch his form at will and there wasn’t much he could do about it. He rested his head on his paw, giving the leftover deer a considering look before darting a glance up at Inuyasha, who had moved to stand on his shoulder.

  “Okay, well, no need to look so down in the dumps.” he said, finally sheathing Tessaiga. He dropped down so he was at eye level with the demon pooch, who looked half-asleep already, and threw his catch down among the pile of bones. “We can just move you into the forest and I’ll explain to Kaede what happened and none of the villagers even have to know you’re still around until you can finally head back home, all right?”

  Sesshomaru’s icy blue irises grew surprisingly sharp and they bore into Inuyasha long enough to make him nervous.  
  “What now?”  
  Those giant jaws suddenly clamped onto his sleeve and dragged him forward a few feet closer before releasing him.

  “What the fuck was that about?” Inuyasha snapped, just barely managing to stop himself from pitching forward onto what remained of the wooden floor.  
  Sesshomaru released a sharp bark that had Inuyasha shooshing him.  
  “You want to wake up the entire village? What is that supposed to mean anyway?”

  As Sesshomaru gingerly got to his paws, Inuyasha backed up, not wanting to be crushed by his cranky older sibling’s sudden need to stretch his legs. Before he could get too far, however, Sesshomaru locked his teeth onto the sleeve again, repeating the action and taking a few measured steps backward to drag Inuyasha even farther in the direction of the forest.

  “I get it, I get it!” he blurted out, digging in his heels and tugging back with his full weight. “You’re not going to leave unless I go with you. I get it! Fine, just let me go, ya sonuva－.”  
  Sesshomaru stopped pulling, but didn’t relinquish his hold on Inuyasha’s shirt. Giving a low growl, he threw his head back and let go, launching Inuyasha up in the air. Spinning skyward in inky blackness with the moon a waving fan out of the corner of his eye, Inuyasha didn’t have much time to react as he began to descend, disoriented and a little sick.

  He never even touched the ground.

  Sesshomaru seized the collar of his robes in his teeth and took off with him into the trees like a bitch with her pup, Inuyasha swinging to and fro from his mouth as the demon lord thudded through the forest, his increased size and strength making quick work of the smaller trees and shrubs. They did not get too far before Inuyasha realized what Sesshomaru’s goal was.

  “Hey,” the half-demon said weakly, doing his best to not be violently ill down his front as his brain finally settled back into its proper position in his skull.  
  Sesshomaru did not respond, too busy navigating the terrain while preserving Inuyasha from the worst of the branch slaps and cuts.  
  “Hey,” he tried again, starting to get well and truly pissed. His hand managed to locate and grip Tessaiga’s handle.

  Inuyasha didn’t have to speak canine to recognize a “shut up” growl when he heard it.  
  “Oy, listen up, ya fluffy bastard!” Inuyasha screamed, unsheathing Tessaiga once more in an arc wide enough to have Sesshomaru dropping him to keep from having a throat full of fang.

  Feeling the world racing up to meet him once more, Inuyasha caught himself on a passing branch, nearly dropping Tessaiga as his stomach slammed into the solid limb.  
  “Yup, didn’t miss this shit.” he gasped, tugging himself up until he could lean back against the twisted-with-age trunk.  
  Sesshomaru towered over his temporary haven, teeth bared and angry red eyes fixed dead on him. He snapped with jaws surprisingly not dripping with deadly poison, but as he had to crouch to reach down far enough, it was nothing for Inuyasha to fall to a branch below to avoid being lifted up again. He scrambled to his feet, and positioned himself to face the demon determined to spirit him away, kicking and screaming if he had to it seemed.

  “Look, I don’t know why it’s so important that I go with you to meet this lady who probably likes me about as well as you do,” Inuyasha said, gesturing with Tessaiga, “but I do know that I’m not going anywhere without taking care of some business first, or at the very least, letting everyone know where I’m going, got that?”  
  Sesshomaru struck again, knocking his head against the tree in his haste, which groaned in protest of the rough treatment, but held firm as the dog stooped lower, chomping to get a piece of clothing in his mouth. Inuyasha dropped down one more branch, dodging just in time to avoid having the ankle of his pants snagged as he dived.

  It was starting to look like he was going to have to call in his favor early.

  “You owe me!” Inuyasha shouted, just loud enough to be heard over the frustrated barks and growls. Sesshomaru calmed at that and stared at him, head canted to the side as though he were demanding an explanation, which, Inuyasha considered bitterly, the entitled ass probably was.

  “I was the one who made sure Kaede’s hut would be livable for you and got you that bedding, and made sure no one, not even Rin, bothered you for two days. I was even on my way to hunt for you until you beat me to it.” Inuyasha rattled off, glaring at Sesshomaru who had deigned to kneel on his front legs so that he was able to look Inuyasha directly in the face.  
  “I don’t think you get how easy it would have been for you to have been taken out of this world, Sesshomaru. You were completely defenseless that day and I helped you, against my better judgement, to be frank. Now, you owe me.”

  Were he in his usual form, Inuyasha could have sworn Sesshomaru would have still been speechless, he was so still and watchful, as though hardly able to believe that he could ever owe Inuyasha _anything_.  
  After what felt like a lifetime of silence between them, Sesshomaru closed his scarlet eyes and lowered his head in acknowledgment. Inuyasha could have whooped with glee.

  “All right, first of all,” he began, lowering Tessaiga, “you need to help fix the mess you made of Kaede’s home. It’s fit for the trash heap more than living now. Then, you’re gonna explain what exactly your mom wants me for if I’m to even _consider_ meeting her. And you’ll have to wait until I take Tsu－a friend, home, got that? She’s been with us for days and her folks are probably worried sick about her.”

  Sesshomaru made a noise somewhere between a growl and a groan.  
  “I mean, you don’t have to explain and fix things _now_ , obviously.” Inuyasha hastened to correct. “Whenever you manage to turn back, though, that would be good. At the very least, you could give me a run-down of what to expect instead of just carting me off to gods-know-where for gods-know-what. Sound fair to you?”

  Inuyasha did not particularly care what his brother thought of his requests, but it was best to make sure he planned to honor it if they were going to make any progress.  
  Sesshomaru lifted his snout skyward, utterly silent other than his steady breaths. Inuyasha held his own as he waited, impatient.

  Sesshomaru didn’t feel he had much in the way of choice. Either he brought Inuyasha to Inukimi, who could very well be trying to match make the pair of them under her son’s nose, not that either he nor Inuyasha would find the arrangement agreeable or anything more than a waste of their time, or he refused to bring the half-breed, which would lead in his mother delivering the guilt trip of Sesshomaru’s existence. As much as he prided himself on not allowing other’s feelings of him get in his way, his mother really was all he had left of his family and if she held a grudge against him, she would make his life an absolute hell, trapped or not.

  Inuyasha’s insistence on lingering, however, ratcheted Sesshomaru’s anxiety up another notch. The sooner the left, the sooner they would be there, in his opinion. There were many things Sesshomaru did not know about his mother, after all. Underestimating her ability to figure out a way to circumvent the magic keeping her sequestered was not something he wished to gamble on. The Lady of the Sky Palace might be a patient woman, but she was most certainly not above taking matters into her own claws when it suited her.

  “Uh, hello? You still in there or did you ascend while I wasn’t looking?” Sesshomaru let out a long sigh through his nose at Inuyasha’s prodding. Much as he detested admitting it, he did owe the sniveling brat _something_ , though not perhaps nearly the amount he demanded. Sesshomaru would have eventually been just fine if left to his own devices. Probably.

  He supposed the hut materials were something he could assist with. It wasn’t as though there was much to it even _before_ he destroyed it and he had taken down quite a few trees just trying to cut through the forest in his more cumbersome form. Explaining his mother’s reasons would be a bit trickier as he didn’t even fully understand them. Whoever his brother was escorting home, they could be dealt with on the way back to Inukimi, as far as Sesshomaru was concerned.

  He woofed in assent, nodding once as he brought his gaze back down to Inuyasha.  
  “All right then. Good. Great even.” Inuyasha said, taking a bounding leap from his branch and touching down on Sesshomaru’s head, earning a steady growl.

  “Hey, the way I see it,” he said, sliding down to the dip between Sesshomaru’s shoulder blades, “you brought me out here, so you can bring me back. None of that tossing bullshit from earlier, though. You’re lucky not to have vomit all over your front paws from that, just so you’re aware for the future.”

  Sesshomaru’s growl morphed into a choked bark as though disgusted at the mere thought. As he circled around in the tight space to start heading back toward the village, Inuyasha snickered under his breath, glad the sound of snapping branches and rumbling pawfalls drowned it out.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. 
> 
> Just wow.
> 
> I have no excuse for this. This chapter is literally late because of who I am as a person, for real. I'm going to be real honest with ya'll too: Not much happens in it. Maybe that's why I had such a boring/shitty time with it, but literally nothing is going on and I'm sorry for that. Hopefully with this sucker out the way, I can start doing fun shit again, but then again, it is the holidays. Beware the possible OOC as well (yeah, I know after people have complimented me on not being that asshole too, right? uuuuuughhh).
> 
> I am just sorry. In both uses of the word.
> 
> For that I'm sorry too.

  A delighted cry and the awed face of Rin leaning close to his own were what Sesshomaru awoke to the following morning. He lay curled within a grassy alcove some distance away from the human village, per Inuyasha’s insistence as he had yet to condense himself back into his regular form.

  Stretching his legs out in front of him, Sesshomaru rolled so that he rested on his belly rather than his side to regard the child properly. It was unlikely his former ward had been allowed to wander out far enough to come across him on her own. Scanning the area behind her, Sesshomaru spotted the demon exterminator standing, stiffly.

  “I’m sorry. She really wanted to see you. Was adamant about it, in fact.” the woman explained, looking uncertain. Her slim hands kept clenching at her sides as though she was itching to either yank the girl out of Sesshomaru’s biting range or reach for the weapon she carried slung over her back.

  “Lord Sesshomaru?” Rin asked, her voice barely more than a reverent whisper as she gazed up at him. Sesshomaru met her wide brown eyes with his own red and blue ones a moment before shooting a disapproving glare at what passed for a proper chaperon these days. He released a quiet _woof_ of confirmation. Feeling strangely affectionate, he bowed his head and dragged his leaf-like tongue up along the side of the girl’s face in true canine fashion. Rin’s laughter rang throughout the clearing, startling the slayer, Sesshomaru was pleased to see.

  “Oh, it _is_ you!” she crowed, wiping saliva off her cheek with her kimono sleeve and beaming up at him with the same respect and wonder she always did. Sesshomaru would have smiled at her if he could. He truly missed having her around. The child was a pleasant change, even if he thought she would be much better off not concerning herself with him. It only ever seemed to lead to her getting hurt or losing her life.

  “I can’t believe it, my lord, you are even lovelier like this.” Rin began to ramble in her characteristic way, interrupting Sesshomaru’s grim musings. “So much pretty silver fur...your eyes are like giant jewels. Even in this form, you appear so very dignified.”

  Sesshomaru had nearly forgotten just how much of a chatterbox Rin could be or, perhaps, he naively hoped she would soon grow out of the particular stage. Though it pleased him to admit that she was still quite the shameless flatterer.

  “Uh-huh, so _this_ is why you kept the kid around so long.” And just like that, Sesshomaru’s peaceful mood was completely obliterated.

 “Lord Inuyasha! Good morning!” Rin called as the half-breed landed beside the colossal canine’s right paw, Sesshomaru’s armor in hand.

  “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?” Inuyasha said tersely, flicking a lock of his hair back over his shoulder. “Just ‘Inuyasha’ works. I ain’t a lord.”

  “But you and Lord Sesshomaru are brothers,” Rin said as though she were explaining something to a small child. “Does that not make you just as great as he?”

  Both Sesshomaru and Inuyasha froze and simply stared at her, but not out of annoyance. Neither of them saw it that way. As far as Sesshomaru was concerned, Inuyasha was nothing more than a mistake their father had done too little to prevent or correct.

  The slayer was heading toward Rin, no doubt to guide her back to the village, when the girl spoke again. “Besides, Myoga calls you ‘lord’ all the time. Why do you never let me do it?”

  Inuyasha blew his bangs out of his eyes, but the cur was smirking. “You little brat. Think you can get away with more just ‘cause your guard dog’s here, huh?” he asked, sounding surprisingly fond to Sesshomaru’s ears.

  Rin stuck her tongue out at him, a behavior Sesshomaru would have readily corrected had he the words to do so. Before he could so much as growl a protest, however, Inuyasha stuck his own tongue out in response and blew, making a very rude sound.

  So that was where she got it from, was it?

  Sesshomaru turned his growl on Inuyasha instead, boring holes into his younger brother’s face with his glare.

  “She started it.” the half-breed snapped, jabbing a clawed finger at Rin.

  A louder growl. Less of a chide and more of a warning.

  “Okay, fine. Fuck. Whatever.” Inuyasha said huffily. He held up the armor between them. “You got somewhere to stash this? They’re starting to clear out the rubble of Kaede’s hut and I figured you wouldn’t appreciate them scrapping it. Couldn’t find your...fluffy...thing though. Sorry.”

  Sesshomaru cocked his head to the side in puzzlement.

  “He must be talking about Mokomoko.” Rin clarified. Sesshomaru looked over to see she was dodging the exterminator’s attempts at grabbing her with an experienced ease.

  Then that meant....

  Sesshomaru’s head whipped back around and he stared at Inuyasha in utter disbelief. His brother could not really be that simple and unobservant, could he?

  “What? I said I was sorry. Maybe one of the villagers took it. I mean, it does look pretty luxurious and the women around here don’t exactly get furs like that－okay, what am I missing?”

  Rin had burst into a fit of giggles as Inuyasha recited his excuses. Sesshomaru would have been amused as well if it weren’t so pathetically sad.

  “I don’t get it either, if it makes you feel better.” the slayer assured Inuyasha, looking more bewildered than cross at the child’s avoidance.

  “ _Lord_ Inuyasha,” Rin smugly began to explain, “Mokomoko _can’t_ be stolen even though Lord Sesshomaru may leave it somewhere without him. He loaned it to me for sleeping when we traveled through the northern mountains.”

  “Huh?” Inuyasha intoned, eyeing the pair as though they were conspiring against him.

  “I don’t really understand it myself. I just know that when Jaken tried to take it from me, he was nearly choked to death by it. Lord Sesshomaru says that Mokomoko has part of his consciousness within it...or something like that, anyway. It cannot be lost or taken without my lord’s express permission.”

  Inuyasha gripped his throat as though remembering something unpleasant and glanced up at Sesshomaru, who did his utmost not to let his surprise show on his face. Mokomoko was very much a physical part of him as well. A manifestation of his true form, just as his fangs, claws, and venom were. When Sesshomaru transformed the night before, Mokomoko reintegrated into his body as his ruff, thus why it had not been found in the remains of the old priestess’ home. The demon lord was shocked Inuyasha had not noticed that particular quirk of it and made a mental note to berate him for his intolerable ignorance later.

  “Huh. Go figure.” Inuyasha said, golden eyes meeting scarlet. “Well, you able to change back yet? Can’t do much helping out like that.”

  Sesshomaru had not attempted to seal his form since the previous night, but he supposed it couldn’t hurt. He did not particularly mind being in it, ordinarily, but Sesshomaru found that his instinctual drives were twice as difficult to ignore when he stayed in his true form too long. The last thing the Lord of the West needed during such a trying time, physically and emotionally, was a lack of control of over his mental faculties as well.

  Also, Inuyasha’s steadily increasing pestering was becoming tiresome.

  Taking in a breath and beginning to summon the energy to encase his large frame, Sesshomaru concentrated on gently urging his true nature back in the space he reserved for it deep within himself.

  All he managed was shrinking his fur back in an inch or so before the bubble of his power popped and he was left panting.

  “Okay, don’t knock yourself out or nothing.” Inuyasha grumbled. Placing his free hand on his hip, he set the armor down beside his brother’s much larger, furred elbow.

  “I suggest you bury this somewhere you can find it again later. Unless you plan to carry it around with you until you change back?”

  Sesshomaru merely looked down at him.

  “What? You expect _me_ to do it? If so, you’re in for a world of disappointment, fluffy.”

  With an impatient shake of his head, Sesshomaru began to stand. He only managed to rise onto his haunches when a faint dizziness overtook him, reminding him just how little he was eating for a rapidly maturing full demon. Perhaps another meal was the key to regaining his bipedal form, much as it pained Sesshomaru to admit it even just to himself.

  The memory of the deer he devoured the previous night appeared to be only that, his aching body craving yet more to replace what it was so quickly using up. There was the mystery of the one who had urged him to eat in the first place to solve as well. It did not seem like the type of task a common human woman would readily volunteer herself for if that was indeed who it had been. Her voice had been light but commanding, almost familiar in its quiet urgency.

  Deciding to give it no more thought for the time being, Sesshomaru steeled himself once more and got to his feet, proud that he only listed a little to the side as he shifted his weight experimentally.

  “Wow,” Rin called up to him, “you’re so tall, my lord.”

  “You know what they say about that, kid,” Inuyasha said, motioning for the slayer to get herself and the girl farther away. “ ‘The bigger they are, the harder they fall’ and your lord is looking a mite unsteady right now so give him some space, yeah?”

  Though he would never admit it out loud, Sesshomaru was grateful for Inuyasha’s interference. The first proper step he took gave him the sensation of flying through the air rather than stepping on solid ground and the last thing he wanted to do was trample Rin while trying to go about catching himself some breakfast.

  Slowly, Sesshomaru picked up his armor, the pauldron securely between his teeth, and carried it a little way away from the others before digging at the earth with a paw until he had a hole deep enough for it to fit it in.

  “You have no idea how messed up it is to watch you actually burying stuff like a dog with a bone.” Inuyasha’s voice carried no real malice, but Sessomaru growled at the insinuation anyway, throwing a dirty look over his shoulder at the half-breed before setting his armor down and beginning to push dirt over it with a few careful sweeps.

  "I mean, yeah, I bury things like that sometimes, but it’s just not _normal_ for someone like you to be doing it.”

  What in the seven hells was that supposed to mean? Sesshomaru, recent events aside, was _always_ normal. At least, he was always himself. He was _Sesshomaru_ , first and foremost in every endeavor. That was as normal as he knew how to be and it was a very proper sort of normal indeed. A far cry better than an uncouth, half-bred savage with no real training, poor grooming habits, and such _ridiculous_ ears.

  As though he could read his mind, Inuyasha added, “I didn’t mean to insult the Great Lord of the Western Lands, so no need to get all quiet on us. That’s just plain ol’ _creepy_.”

  Were he a being of lesser control, Sesshomaru might just have ripped him apart. Gods knew, he _wanted_ to. If Inuyasha’s foul blood was not a natural deterrent to a palate such as his, Sesshomaru would have at least bitten him, just to prove a point.

  Soothing his inner beast with a silent promise of much better fare instead, the demon lord lifted his muzzle to the slightly overcast sky and opened up all of his senses, unreliable though they might have been, off and on, the last few months. The surrounding area was laid out, piece by piece, before him. Sesshomaru could hear the burbling of the nearby streams and rivers, could smell the bitter dankness of the marshes as well as the dry, crisp air of the mountains. He could practically taste the sap of far-reaching forest around them and wasn’t the least bit surprised at the hint of rain on the breeze from the northwest.

  Extending himself past wherever he happened to be had been one of the first skills his father had taught Sesshomaru as a child and it had become near invaluable to him. It helped to know where one was and where one was going before just taking off, Toga had often told him. As it just so turned out, his father had been right and Sesshomaru had the scent of a nearby boar within moments.

  Forcing down any lingering faintness he might have felt, Sesshomaru dropped into a four-legged crouch and took a soaring leap into the trees, already closing the distance between him and his intended meal. He picked up his brother’s low curse behind him and wanted to laugh, despite himself. Inuyasha’s sudden need to assist him was nothing more than yet another eccentricity of the whelp, Sesshomaru was convinced, and not one he had any desire to indulge when he could simply avoid it until it was time to return to the palace in the sky.

  “Sesshomaru, just where the hell are you going?” It figured the moment Sesshomaru had resolved to go back to ignoring Inuyasha’s existence, the surly pest chose to make it that much more difficult for him to do so. Not bothering to even glance behind him, Sesshomaru bounded further and faster, leaving his nosy sibling behind with little effort.

  The boar had definitely heard him coming and was trotting as fast as it’s stubby legs could carry it directly ahead, by the feel of the ground beneath Sesshomaru’s paws. Narrowly avoiding impaling himself on a tree, the demon dog finally caught sight of the retreating swine and his stomach gave a twinge, as though to urge him on.

  With one final, almost desperate, lunge, his fangs were piercing the thick hide and a hair-raising squeal split the air. Hot blood hit Sesshomaru’s tongue, increasing the venomous saliva that was slowly eating into the flesh of boar’s back. The sounds the creature began to emit were shrill enough to make Sesshomaru wince.

  He bit harder into the still-squirming body, nearly tearing it in two and squeezing more of that ambrosial nectar out as it went limp in his jaws. Sesshomaru could not recall the last time he had tasted something so viscerally appealing and he had to take a moment just to savor it.

  Unfortunately, Inuyasha had caught up with him.

  “Dammit Sesshomaru, can’t you at least offer _some_ kind of explanation before you go－oh.”

  Sesshomaru turned slowly to keep Inuyasha in his sight as the other came to an awkward stop in a tree a few tail-lengths away, gold eyes wide.

  “I don’t think that’s going to do much for you if you’re hungry. It’s a pretty runty boar, especially for this time of the year.”

  Growling low and clamping down on his kill, Sesshomaru glared at him. He was feeling particularly possessive of his “runty” boar and Inuyasha’s increasing proximity only served to agitate him further.

  The half-demon sighed. The boar between his brother’s jaws was barely a mouthful in such a large form. Inuyasha didn’t much feel like chasing after the stubborn dog all over the countryside just so he could get his fill, but at least Koga had warned him about the increased appetite before taking off. Sesshomaru would have to eat damn near constantly to maintain what little strength he still had if he kept exerting himself.

  Inuyasha didn’t think the entire country would be big enough to feed him if Sesshomaru stayed a dog throughout the remainder of his cycle.

  “Hey furface, I’ve got a better idea for you,” Inuyasha said, dropping to the forest floor in a crouch. The great rumble that bubbled up from Sesshomaru’s chest made him freeze and look up. Sesshomaru’s ears were flat against his skull and his eyes had narrowed to angry slits.

  _Great, now he thinks I came to steal his food._ Inuyasha just barely managed not to roll his eyes at the canine behavior and slowly straightened up. He was about to growl in response when Koga’s advice came drifting back to him.

_"Don’t rile him up, mutt.” Koga said, looking as serious as he had ever seen him. “If you act like you normally do it might encourage him to be more violent than you’re used to.”_

_Inuyasha scoffed._

_“Need I remind you that this is_ Sesshomaru _we’re talking about here. He doesn’t need a reason to try and kill me, he just does it.”_

_"Well, you have been on good terms with him lately,” Miroku offered from the other side of the fire. “Surely it couldn’t hurt to try and get along for once?”_

_“Listen, monk,” Inuyasha snapped, “the only reason we’ve been on ‘good terms’ is that snobby shit is never around and when he is, it’s only about an hour or so. Any longer and I’m prepared to gut him and he knows that.”_

_"Inuyasha,” Koga said, leveling a steady glare at him over Kagome’s head._

_Inuyasha nearly fell over in shock and judging by his friends faces when he glanced around to make sure he wasn’t hearing things, they were just as taken aback at the wolf using his actual name as he was. Meeting blue eyes with his own, Inuyasha motioned for him to go on._

_“I mean it, do not fuck around here. There will be times where Sesshomaru may not even be in his right mind and if you engage him as you would any other day, he could turn on anyone, even the kid he happens to like, out of pure, blind instinct.”_

_The hush that fell over them all was a palpable one._

_“_ _I’ve seen friends, good friends, attack one another when consumed with the blood rage that maturation cycles can stir up.” Koga continued, gruff voice quiet, “No one I know has died, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t or can’t happen. You need to watch yourself and, for once in your flea-bitten life, do not challenge Sesshomaru unless he is really out of line. I’m talking slaughtering villagers by the dozen, declaring himself some kind of demon god, or enslaving every female in the western lands, got it? He would make mincemeat out of you either way, but you better make sure it’s something worth dying over.”_

  Something worth dying over, huh? Inuyasha had plenty of that, unfortunately.

  “Are you going to eat that or not? You keep drooling and there’ll be nothing left of it, acid breath.” he asked, leaning back against the trunk of the tree and crossing his arms, doing his best to look entirely uninterested and non-threatening.

  It must have worked because Sesshomaru seemed to snap back to himself for the time being and dropped the boar on the ground, which sported a crescent of dead grass where Sesshomaru’s poison had dripped onto it.

  “What? You don’t want it－” Before he could finish, Sesshomaru was tearing into what remained of his kill with apparent relish, the crunching of bones loud in the otherwise silent forest.

  “So, about my idea,” Inuyasha drawled. Sesshomaru did not look up at him, but his twitching ears were a sign he was listening, at least. “We head to the ocean to feed you.”

  Sesshomaru released the boar haunch he had been gnawing on to regard Inuyasha with a surprisingly skeptical look.

  Inuyasha raised his hands in front of him and said, “No, hear me out. You’ll go through the entire deer population at this rate and boars are pretty scarce. You don’t want the village cows. I’m guessing you’re not too crazy about demon meat either. What’s bigger than a cow?”

  Sesshomaru whuffed as if he didn’t have time to entertain any such ideas and bent his head back to his meal.

  “Whales, dumbass.” Inuyasha continued. “They’re huge and they live in the ocean. You put away a couple of those and you’ll be able to change back and won’t have to eat so much after. See? It makes sense.”

  Sesshomaru continued to ignore him, clearly unimpressed.

  “Fuck you too, then.” Inuyasha grumbled, “I didn’t hear you coming up with anything.”

  A considerable silence fell over them, punctuated by wet, uneven chewing on Sesshomaru’s part. Inuyasha watched the older demon until the sight and smell of fresh kill caused his own stomach to rumble. Feeling his ears warm as Sesshomaru paused his eating and leveled a curious pair of eyes on him, Inuyasha decided it was time for him to head back before the others came searching.

  “Come find me when you’re done. I need help moving these trees _you_ knocked down into the village.” he said, turning to begin his trek back. Figures his stomach would take such a moment to remind him how hungry he was. It wasn’t as though he hadn’t just eaten. Then again, since Kagome had returned, Inuyasha had gone back to much smaller portions just to keep her from lecturing him about possible overeating. He knew she was concerned for his health, but it was a matter of different blood. Due to his demon half, Inuyasha simply needed more. He burned it off too quickly otherwise. The past three years had returned much of the natural strength he’d lost while traveling with the others and he was loathe to give it up again. Kaede, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo all understood that, but for whatever reason, Kagome just didn’t.

  Entertaining the idea of doing a bit of hunting himself before returning, Inuyasha nearly jumped out of his skin when a short bark sounded from directly behind him.

  “What the－?” Inuyasha whirled around, smacking Sesshomaru in the nose with his hair, the dog’s muzzle being only a foot away from his face.

  Looking as annoyed as it was possible for him to, Sesshomaru held a chunk of boar meat between his teeth much the same way he had carried Inuyasha the night before.

  “What the hell are you trying to do?” Inuyasha demanded. He retreated back a step, coming into contact once more with the trunk of the tree.

  Sesshomaru merely held the meat out to him, lethal fangs displayed with the gesture.

  Inuyasha kept his gaze glued to them even as he asked, “What, is something wrong with it?”

  Sapphire pupils rolled heavenward and Sesshomaru tossed the offering at him with a flick of his head, already rising from his crouch. With fumbling hands, Inuyasha caught it, wrinkling his nose at the squishy feel of it between his fingers. He brought it closer to his face for a quick sniff and noted that it seemed perfectly fine. Bloodier than he’d had in a long time, but it definitely smelled edible. Then it hit him.

  “Are you giving this to me?” he asked, incredulous, peering up at his brother.

  The great dog gave a slight nod down at him.

  “Why? It’s not like there was much of it to begin with.”

  Sesshomaru heaved a breath and stared at Inuyasha, flicking his tail at the remains of the boar. It was as if to say, “if you don’t want it, give it back”.

  “No way, it’s mine now.” Inuyasha said, tearing into the meat in his hands eagerly. It was only halfway through his much more satisfying meal that Inuyasha realized Sesshomaru was being _nice_ to him.

  The thought nearly made him choke.

  “Seriously, what gives?” he tried again through a mouthful of boar. He almost certainly had blood all over his face if Sesshomaru’s glare was anything to go by.

  “I know you can’t really talk right now, but you would rather take my head off than feed me any other day, so, what? This maturation thing making you decent for a change?”

  Sesshomaru snorted like the very notion offended him. Inuyasha took another bite, considering.

  “Well, there’s gotta be something to it, right? No way you’re this _brotherly_ just because you’re stuck looking like a pillow turned inside out.”

  The bark Sesshomaru released shook the forest around them and blood-hued eyes were only inches from Inuyasha’s own the next second.

  “Whoa, okay, fine. Touchy much?” Inuyasha laughed despite the flicker of panic somewhere beneath his ribcage. “Maybe you’re just feeling charitable today?”

  It must have appeased Sesshomaru in some fashion, because he went back to picking over the bones of his breakfast for leftovers. They were silent again for a time. Long enough to finish eating, at any rate. Swallowing his last bite, Inuyasha asked,

  “Think you can manage helping out some before going for seconds?”

  Sesshomaru cast a longing look to the trees on his right.

  “I would rather you eat tiny boars than villagers if you’re starving too, but considering how wet the air smells, we’re getting rain soon, Sesshomaru.”

  A slow exhale morphed into a whine before Sesshomaru could stop it, but he turned back to Inuyasha and gave a quick nod anyway.

  “Great. Then let’s－”

  Something wet, pink, and warm flicked over Inuyasha’s face in the next instant. No, not just something, he realized. A tongue. A long, almost-ragged-in-appearance tongue. _Sesshomaru’s_ tongue. The bastard had _licked_ him.

  Before Inuyasha could react or, at least, demand to know what Sesshomaru thought he was doing, he found himself being licked again. Then again. A steady series of licks concentrated to the area around his mouth.

  _What the hell? Oh, the blood._

  Sesshomaru was cleaning him. Not that that made the situation any less weird or less completely _humiliating_. Seriously, what the fuck?

  Pressing a hand firmly against Sesshomaru’s nose, Inuyasha held him at bay long enough for him to slide out from between his brother and the tree, putting some much-needed distance between them.

  “Let’s get one thing straight,” he began, heart racing in his chest as he faced his elder sibling, “I’m not a pup. I can take care of myself just fine. That includes baths. Never, and I mean _never_ , do that again.”

  The slight raising of Sesshomaru’s brows was the only shift in the demon’s otherwise stoic expression. As if he hadn’t just done something (well, several somethings) completely out of character. For all Inuyasha knew, he hadn’t really. He’d seen Sesshomaru lick Rin earlier and neither of them treated it as that big of a deal. Inuyasha didn’t think he’d seen Sesshomaru stay a dog for very long either.

  Maybe...Sesshomaru had a harder time ignoring his instincts in his true form or something.

  Then there was the maturation cycle to think about. Sesshomaru would be emotionally unstable for a while if what Koga said about it lasting months was true.

  Inuyasha wasn’t sure he would be able to take months of whatever the hell this was, if he was being honest.

  “Just...c’mon, you weirdo. We’ve got work to do.” 　　

* * *

 

  “I wonder what's taking them so long.” Miroku sighed, peering out into the downpour that had begun.

  “Sesshomaru took off rather fast. Maybe Inuyasha is still trying to catch up to him?” Sango offered. She was busy braiding Rin’s hair into one long plait down the girl’s back and didn’t look up from her work. No doubt, she would just make a fool out of herself if she did. She’d been doing that a lot as of late.

  They sat just inside the hut with one of their kind hosts to wait out the rain. Tsukiko had taken ill with what she described as ‘just a light headache’ and was resting in the next room while the children were visiting friends. Technically, Miroku and Sango could have returned to the exterminators’ village instead of relying so much on the hospitality of Kaede’s neighbors, but both wanted to help repair the old priestess’ home. Unfortunately, it meant taking up more space that the family simply didn’t have for five more people.

  “Perhaps we should have just camped out for a few days.” Miroku said, as if sensing the turn the slayer’s thoughts had taken.

  “What? And be caught out in this horrible weather?” Chihiro piped up from behind them as she poured herself another cup of tea. “It’s really no trouble. We love having you. In fact, it’s an honor.”

  “Really?”

  “Of course. I’m just sorry we can’t provide more. I’ve tried to talk Hideki into adding a room this summer, but－”

  “Oh no, it’s more than enough, thank you.” Miroku assured her, the monk’s tone taking on its familiar charm before he took a sip of his own tea.

  “I just hope this hasn’t been too hard on Lady Kaede, what with losing her home and all.” Chihiro said. “First, her sister’s remains are stolen, then her house is destroyed shortly after they are returned. She just hasn’t had much luck keeping things around lately, I’d say.”

  “She did seem kind of sad yesterday.” Rin offered in a quiet voice.

  As she bound off the girl’s braid, Sango couldn’t help but silently agree. Kaede did not usually allow herself much in the way of mourning her losses outright, but she knew it was difficult for her to lose so much in so short a time.

  “Perhaps－hm? What in the world was that? An earthquake?”

  Miroku and Sango were on their feet before the next tremble rose through the floor, the latter pushing Rin behind her automatically. While Kaede kept busy with mentoring Kagome and assisting the villagers, Sango had volunteered to be responsible for the child in the meantime and that included keeping her out of dangerous situations.

  “I can only assume that what I’m sensing is Sesshomaru, but his demonic aura...it’s not as overwhelmingly obvious as one would expect it to be.” Miroku informed them, sounding somewhat impressed. “Little wonder I can’t pick it up until he’s practically on top of us.”

  “Do you think that means he’s in control of himself then?” Sango asked, moving closer to the door to try and see if she could catch a glimpse of them.

  “I would hope so. Inuyasha might need our help, otherwise.”

  “I’m going to go meet them. Rin, stay here with Miss Chihiro, all right?”

  “Have Lord Sesshomaru and Inuyasha returned?”

  “Maybe, but...we don’t know what sort of mood they might be in. It’s best if you wait here.”

  “But－”

  “Rin, dear, would you like to learn how I make my village-famous stew today?” Chihiro cut in, giving Sango a significant look.

  Rin’s worried expression morphed into one of conflict before she finally released a sigh that seemed too large for her small frame and nodded.

  “I’ll be back before you know it,” Sango assured her, going to pick up the umbrella Kagome left by the door only to see it already open in Miroku’s hand as stood just outside.

  “You really didn’t think I was going to let you go alone, did you?” he asked her seriously as he held it out so they both could stand under it.

  “How considerate.” Sango acknowledged with a small smile, “but you keep your hands to yourself, understood?”

  “What my wife-to-be thinks of me. You wound me more than you know.” Miroku said, placing his now wind tunnel-free hand against his heart.

  “I certainly will be if you try anything, lech. We’re not married _yet_ , after all.” Ignoring the guilty twinge that came with knowing there was still time for her to confess her real feelings, Sango slid on her sandals and joined him under the blue tarp (Kagome had tried to explain the material to them, but they didn’t really have anything like it naturally) to begin heading toward the pawfalls that steadily continued to shake the soupy earth.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter. New problems. New...Sesshomaru? Whaaaaaaaa-?

  Sesshomaru stopped just outside the village. Inuyasha drew even with him and sighed. 　　

  “You know, you actually have to go in at some point, right?” He gave Sesshomaru’s haunch a tap with the end of the small tree resting on his shoulder. “Or are you hoping I’ll just tell you to get lost and carry all these in myself?” 　　

  Sesshomaru merely glared down at him over the trees clamped in his jaws. With a huff, the demon started forward only to stop again when a voice said, “Ah, there they are.” 　　

  His glare then turned to the pair approaching them under Kagome’s weird parasol. Sango wasn’t the first to stop, Inuyasha was amused to see. 　　

  “You seem to be faring much better than when we last saw you, Lord Sesshomaru.” Miroku faltered at the rumble of warning from the dog. 　　

  “Oh, give it a rest.” Inuyasha tossed over his shoulder as he passed him. 　　

  “Are those trees?” Sango asked with a raised brow. 　　

  “They were. Now, they’re lumber for Kaede’s new hut. Can’t do too much with it now, but waste not, want not.” 　　

  “That’s true.” she agreed slowly, glancing at Sesshomaru before adding, “are you sure it’s wise for him to be here like this? The villagers－” 　　

  “Will just have to get used to it until he figures out how to change back. He caused this mess, now he needs to help fix it. Shaggy mug or not.” 　　

  “I suppose.” 　　

  “Most are inside to wait out the rain. He might not be spotted immediately.” Miroku said, looking pensive. 　　

  “Let’s get movin’ then. There’s a lot of these.” 　　

  As they made their way to where Kaede’s hut once stood, Miroku leaned over as far as the umbrella would allow to whisper, “He really means to help with the task?” 　　

  Inuyasha snorted, knowing that whispering was probably useless with his brother’s hearing being what it was, and replied, “It wasn’t easy, but I got him to take some responsibility for it, yeah.” 　　

  Miroku looked mildly impressed. 　　

  Inuyasha dropped his tree just beside the small bit of wall that still remained of the hut. He had to leap out of the way when Sesshomaru spat out his burden on top of it, however. 　　

  “Watch it.” the half-demon snapped, golden eyes narrowed at his friends as they laughed. 　　

  Sesshomaru only left to retrieve more wood, seemingly unperturbed by the way the rain had plastered his fur against his body. Inuyasha’s proverbial hackles lowered and he admitted to the others that he wasn’t sure Sesshomaru was entirely with them. 　　

  “I mean, it’s nice that he’s shutting up for once, but he hasn’t really been himself since he ate.” 　　

  “Well, Inuyasha, it’s not as though he can speak as he is.” Sango pointed out, slapping Miroku’s hand away from her rear. 　　

  “No, I know that. It just seems like he’s really tired or something.” 　

  “Perhaps,” Miroku said, massaging his stinging fingers, “he is simply worried about his maturation? It seems like a very difficult time in a demon’s life.” 　　

  It was a fair guess, all things considered. Besides, it wasn’t like Inuyasha was actually worried about his brother or anything. He was quite glad he was too distracted to make his life a living hell. It was just odd to see the other looking so damn _miserable_. 　　

  “Kagome back yet?” Inuyasha asked to give himself something a little less maudlin to focus on. 　　

  “We haven’t seen her or Kaede since they left this morning to attend the shrine.” 　　

  “Psh. Figures. Tsukiko still lazing about?” 　　

  “She’s not feeling well, Inuyasha.” Sango said, looking stern. 　　

  “Still?"

  His worry must have shown on his face because Miroku offered to check on her.　　

  “I’ll do it. We all know you can’t be trusted.” Sango stopped the monk before he could take two steps with a painful-looking grip on his wrist. 　　

  “Eh, don’t bother. _She_ was the one asking if she could be of any use today.” he said with a shrug. It was probably better that she wasn’t out running around anyway. Inuyasha mused on the two swords he had left in her safe-keeping, per her strangely serious insistence. He hadn’t told Sesshomaru he’d left them in the care of a human woman and had been somewhat relieved when he hadn’t asked after them along with Mokomoko. Even if it meant his brother had to be seriously out of it to _not_ ask after them. 　　

  A booming bark made all three of them jump. 　　

  “I think he－” 　　

  “Yeah yeah, I’m coming, keep your fur on.” Inuyasha called, flicking his sodden bangs out of his eyes. 　　

  “At least they’re not fighting.” Sango said as she and Miroku watched him stalk away. 　　

* * *

  Once a considerable amount of downed trees had been stacked up, Inuyasha returned with the others to Chihiro. Sesshomaru took off once more into the forest just as the rain became heavy again. Inuyasha suspected it was to track down more food and his worry began anew. 　　

  It wasn’t helped by Kagome meeting them at the door, looking anxious as her eyes darted between them. 　　

  “What’s wrong, somebody die?” Inuyasha asked, only half joking. 　　

  “No, it’s not that. It’s just...” she paused, biting her lip. “We can’t find Rin.”

  “She was not here to greet you?” Miroku asked, posture going rigid. 　　

  “She was here when you left, I know she was.” Chihiro told them, from where she stood behind Kagome in the doorway. The woman was a frantic mess. Water dripped from her hair and mingled with the tears on her cheeks as she chewed on a thumb nail, clenching the fabric at her thigh in a white-knuckled fist. “I only turned my back for a moment and she was gone. I’ve asked the neighbors. I even ran to the shrine. I was hoping she was with you, but－” 　　

  “It isn’t your fault,” Sango assured her gently, “We’ll find her. She can’t have gone that far.” 　　

  Inuyasha turned to rake his gaze over the landscape, eyes settling on the treeline “You’re not gonna find her in the village. I’m bettin’ she took advantage of the rain and followed Sesshomaru, knowing I wouldn’t be able to smell her.” The kid was way smarter than people gave her credit for. 　　

  “You don’t think－?” Kagome let the question trail off, reaching back to place a comforting hand on Chihiro’s shoulder. 　　

  “He’s pretty unpredictable lately, so who can say? Either way, we better go after her and make sure she doesn’t get hurt. There are dangerous things out there other than just Sesshomaru, after all.” 　　

* * *

  Meat. 　　

  Blood. 　　

 Just ahead. 　　

  Prey. Weak. 　　

  Running　

 _Prey._ 　

  **_Meat._** 　

  Sesshomaru’s animal brain kept up the same, desperate chant as he made his way through the forest. It was all he could do just to move one paw in front of the other. If reason had remained with him at all, it would have reflected on how Inuyasha had been correct in his earlier assessment of the boar, even if Sesshomaru would be long-dead before ever admitting openly that the half-breed was right about anything. 　　

  The blood on Inuyasha’s face had teased him then, fresh as it was from the kill. The demon lord had damned himself the moment his tongue lapped it off the other’s skin. The thick, metallic taste had occupied him as they carted the felled trees into the village. Being surrounded by so many appetizing smells had been a test in control that only the rain had aided him with. The moment Inuyasha had given him leave, he’d bolted, disconcerted by the mind-consuming hunger and, ever more important, when it might cease. 　　

  His maturation cycle had taken a turn for the worse, there was no denying it, but _why_? He had had so few problems until the visit to his mother, which felt as though it occurred years ago. Uncharacteristic fatigue and the desire to be near his kind, perhaps the odd pang of hunger or arousal that he quickly quashed, but nothing as extreme as what had set his blood ablaze the last few days and worked to reduce the rest of him to ash. 　　

  A swift bite and blood finally wet his tongue before he tipped his head back and swallowed the stag whole. No sense in picking at it when it would be gone all too soon. Onto the next. 　　

  The desire to gorge himself on every struggling creature he came across only grew as he progressed through the forest, snapping up even rabbits too small for a starving wolf. In the middle of swallowing yet another deer, he smelled it. The wind had changed just enough to bring Sesshomaru the faint and usually abhorred stench of human－ _frightened_ human－somewhere just behind him.

  Tongue lolling out of his blood-streaked muzzle, Sesshomaru turned toward the intoxicating aroma and came face-to-face with a very small, and very wet human, peeking around a tall bush. 　　

  The pair stared at one another for a moment that stretched on far too long to Rin. The only sounds were that of the rain and her former traveling companion’s heavy breaths. 　　

  Lord Sesshomaru did not eat human food, Rin remembered that much, but what she had witnessed...something was wrong. Something no one would tell her about, no matter how much she pleaded with them. They all saw her as nothing more than a silly child. Even Shippo was told more than she and it just wasn’t fair. Lord Sesshomaru was like a father to her, if he was unwell or in trouble, she deserved to know just as much as anyone else. More, even. Where were Jaken and A-Un? Why had they not come to the village to see her? Had Lord Sesshomaru ordered them not to? Why could he not transform back? So many questions danced in Rin’s mind, but no one bothered to give her the answers she sought. When she had spied him in the village, she had felt compelled to follow the moment she could slip away from Miss Chihiro. Lord Sesshomaru would have answers, despite having been absent for so many months that Rin had begun to think he had forgotten about her. 　　

  “Lord Sesshomaru,” she began, stepping out into the open. Those captivating eyes, each bigger than her entire body, narrowed to slits. “What are you doing out here? Why are you acting like this? If something is wrong, please tell me. I want to help.” 　　

  She took a few more cautious steps forward, but stopped when two rows of sharp teeth were revealed and a sound like thunder erupted from between them. Lightning flashed overhead, casting sinister shadows over the familiar posture of a dog about to attack. 　　

  _It’s just like that one time, with the wolves._ Rin’s brain supplied unhelpfully, and her subsequent shiver was not due to the rain. _This is different, she reminded herself. Lord Sesshomaru will never hurt me He is always good and kind and－_ 　　

  He began making his way toward her, head even with his shoulders and his teeth still bared, snarls emitting from his throat. 　　

  Rin, feeling much more unsure, backed up. Unable to tear her gaze from the advancing beast, she nearly tripped several times. 　　

  “Lord Sesshomaru?” she asked, her insides twisting unpleasantly in her mounting panic. 　　

  He did not cease nor show any indication of having heard or understood her. If anything, his pace quickened and he gave a bark. 　　

  Rin was sure that Lord Sesshomaru had been the one to tell her that running from wild animals was dangerous. It made them want to give chase and, sooner or later, they would catch you if you were not capable of outrunning or outsmarting them. Rin did not believe herself to be very fast or very smart, but if there was one thing she could count on it was that no one, animal or not, liked the sound of her screaming. Especially not Lord Sesshomaru, for the amount of times he had told her to be quiet. 　　

  Sucking in a big breath, Rin _screamed_. 　　

* * *

　“Inuyasha,” 　　

  “I heard it before you did. That set of lungs is definitely Rin.” 　　

  “That’s what I was afraid of.” Kagome murmured from her spot atop Inuyasha’s back. Sesshomaru had carved a path through the forest in his quest for food, a welcome aid since the rain made it damn near impossible to sniff out his exact location for the half-demon. Miroku and Sango had been left behind to protect the village in case Sesshomaru returned in less than charitable spirits, but the sight of so much easy destruction made Inuyasha wonder if they might need the back up after all. 　　

  “Get the lead out, Inuyasha.” Shippo urged, tiny claws piercing his shoulder through the fire rat robe. 　　

  “You wanna carry us instead?” Inuyasha asked as he vaulted a swollen stream and navigated the bordering trees with a little less ease than he would if they were dry. 　　

  “I can’t and you know it.” Shippo pouted through sopping bangs. “Sesshomaru might already be taking a bite out of her. Doesn’t that bother you?” 　　

  “Of course it does,” Inuyasha admitted, “but I can only move so fast in this weather. Besides, I think _Sesshomaru_ is the one we’d have to worry about if it turns out he is snacking on her.” 　　

  The pair he piggybacked went deathly silent at his words, giving Inuyasha some time to try and come up with a plan as the cries of distress, worryingly, began to wane. It just figured that Koga would give them a warning about coming between Sesshomaru and whatever he might be after not even a week before they would attempt to do precisely that. It was practically the story of their lives. 　　

  “Kagome, I’m gonna drop you and Shippo off out of sight.” 　　

  “What are you up to?” she asked. Her tone was suspicious, but she was already scooping Shippo onto her own shoulder in preparation. 　　

  “The first chance you get, you need to grab Rin and hightail it, got it? I can barely compete with Sesshomaru when he’s in his right mind, let alone when he’s so out of it he may as well be a different person.” 　　

  “Inuyasha,－” 　　

  “Don’t argue, just do it. I can kinda see fuzzface now, so there’s no time to fight over the details. Maybe I can still give him the slip after you leave.” 　　

  He felt Kagome sigh against him, but all she said was, “I hope you know what you’re doing.” 　　

  Inuyasha honestly had no clue, but she didn’t need to know that. Ever, if he wanted to keep his ears, which she had taken to pulling on in place her usual sit commands. 　　

  “Just stay low and wait until I get him away,” he bit off the ‘if Rin can even be saved now’ before he had two crying friends on his hands and dropped down to the forest floor. He stooped so Kagome could slip off his back with the fox kit, but before he could straighten, a red-faced, gasping Rin barreled headlong into him from the foliage ahead, sending them both sprawling in the mud. 　　

  “Oh, thank goodness,” Inuyasha heard Kagome breathe out. 　　

  “Rin, you’re alive!” Shippo sprang down to join the awkward embrace, clinging to the girl’s sodden hair and babbling incoherently into her shoulder. 　　Inuyasha wanted to be relieved too. There was just the slight problem of the blood-red eyes, promising death to every single one of them, gazing down at him where he lay. 　　

  “Rin, you need to go with Kagome and Shippo. Now.” 　　

  “Inuyasha, what are you－?” 　　

  “Kagome, get as far away from here as you can.” 　　

  “I don’t underst－” 　　

  “Do as I say－” 　　

  At Rin’s renewed screaming, Kagome’s gaze shot to the girl on Inuyasha’s chest, then to the point above them she was looking with such an expression of unadulterated terror. 　　

  Sesshomaru’s true form stood, towering, nearly as tall as the highest trees framing his bloodied face and snout as he surveyed their group. If it weren’t for the hunter’s crouch he had adopted, he might have disappeared into the canopy. He had to have grown a few stories, at least, in height. 　　

  “Oh boy.” Kagome said, absently. 　　

  “Yeah.” Inuyasha grunted as he sat up with both children in his arms before passing them over to her. 　　

  “I guess we should....” 　　

  “Yup.” 　　

  She took a couple steps back, Rin cradled to her chest and Shippo nearly falling off at his first good look at what they were up against before he got a solid grip on Kagome’s sleeve and clung on for dear life, shaking. 　　

  Sesshomaru’s eyes were locked on her, mangled tongue lolling out in something of a perverse canine grin, as he took one step toward her. 　　

  “Hey, you ain’t going anywhere, shitlord.” Inuyasha boldly called up, on his feet and unsheathing Tessaiga. “I took your arm off once and I can do it again. Hell, maybe I’ll even try for two this time.” 　　

  Sesshomaru snorted, but his gaze never left Kagome, who was feeling more and more like a mouse caught in the sight of a cat, and began steadily backing away. Sesshomaru merely followed at the same pace... 　　

  ...until Inuyasha leapt up and slashed his brother’s nose open with his claws. 　

  _That got his attention, all right._ Kagome thought as she squelched through the underbrush, pained howls sounding behind her. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it very far before she realized she had no idea where she was going. 　

  “Shippo, you’re going to have to take Rin back to the village with you.” she panted, ducking behind a nearby trunk. 　　

  “What? Are you crazy?” the young fox squeaked out, stroking Rin’s hand to comfort the silently crying girl. “I’m not leaving you out here, in the pouring rain, when Sesshomaru’s on a rampage. It’s bad enough Inuyasha’s gotta take him on alone.” 　　

  “He’s not going to be alone if I stay. You can’t fly both me and Rin back anyway. You _can_ take her and warn the others what’s going on, though.” Kagome told him, looking back behind them to make sure Sesshomaru hadn’t managed to give Inuyasha the slip. 　　

  “But－” 　　

  “No ‘buts’. Just do it. We’ll be fine as long as Sesshomaru isn’t suddenly completely invulnerable to sacred arrows.” 　　

  “I don’t like this,” Shippo muttered, hopping into the air and transforming with an audible pop, “but I’m doing it anyway, I guess.” 　　

  “’Atta boy.” Kagome cheered a little breathlessly. Something was definitely coming toward them. 　　

  She all but tossed Rin on top of him and hissed at them to get away, snatching her bow from her back and nocking an arrow. 　　

  “I’ll cover you, so fly! Or float. Whatever. Just go.” 　　

  “On it.” Shippo replied, rocketing up toward the canopy with his precious cargo to get their bearings. 　　

  Taking a steadying breath, Kagome stepped out from behind her tree and aimed directly ahead at Sesshomaru’s struggling form. From the poor angle and what little she could see of him, it appeared Inuyasha had had to take a more hands-on approach and had grabbed onto his Sesshomaru’s tail in an attempt to stop him advancing any further. 　　

  Deciding an arrow to the paw would definitely be a deterrent, Kagome lowered her bow to fire, but stopped cold as a Tsukiko stepped from the shadows and planted herself firmly between Kagome and her target, facing the latter.

  “Inuyasha!” Kagome yelled to get the half-demon’s attention over the not-inconsiderable noise of the rain. 　　

  “What the hell...are you still...doing here?” Inuyasha roared back, obviously digging in his heels, to no avail. 　　

  “Inuyasha, look out!” 　　

  As it turned out, Kagome’s warning was not needed. 　　

  Tsukiko jumped as Sesshomaru finally stood before the two women, much the same way as Inuyasha had earlier to scratch Sesshomaru’s nose. Unlike Inuyasha, however, her hand came to rest on the crescent moon adorning Sesshomauru’s forehead. 　　

  Kagome had to throw her arms up over her eyes to block out the near-blinding white light the connection generated. Raw energy buffeted her body like a tempest and she flung herself to the ground to keep from being slammed back by the sheer power sending tingles shooting up her spine. 　　

  _What’s happening? How is Tsukiko capable of something so－what about Inuyasha?_ 　　

  Her questions went miserably unanswered for several moments. The explosion of energy eventually faded to a dull roar, dwindling to nothing but the sound of rain around them. 　　

  After a quick peek to make sure it was over, Kagome lifted her head and began scanning for Inuyasha. She found him readily enough, in a similar position on the ground, about twenty feet away. He was already pushing himself up, rubbing a muddy arm across his eyes. 　　

  “Okay, what just happened? Tsukiko, you damned nutcase. He could have－oh, _fuck_.” 　　

  That actually summed the situation up pretty well as far as Kagome was concerned. 　　

  Tsukiko, drenched, and with an expression that exuded her usual disapproval, stood beside an unconscious young man with long dark hair and very familiar clothes. 　　

  Kagome scrambled to her feet, sliding only once, and went to join Inuyasha in staring at Sesshomaru, albeit a very _human-_ looking Sesshomaru, lying in front of them. 　　

  “Don’t just stand there gaping, Inuyasha. Help me get him back to the village before we all catch our deaths of cold in this wretched forest.” Tsukiko snapped at the half-demon, rousing him into some semblance of action. 　　

  “How did you－?” he began to ask as he crouched down to examine his brother’s sleeping, and foreignly bare of his usual markings, face. 　　

  “No time. We must hurry and return. This rain won’t be stopping anytime soon.” Tsukiko turned to begin walking away and Kagome noticed that she wasn’t even wearing shoes or socks. She wondered if the woman had run straight out of her sickbed to catch up with them and, ultimately, save them from Sesshomaru’s sudden craving for human. She might not understand _how_ she did it, but she was grateful all the same. 　　

  “Th-thank you.” Kagome called after Tsukiko, making her pause and turn to regard the priestess with that searching look that made them all uneasy.

  “You can ‘thank’ me by getting him someplace warm and dry.” Tsukiko said simply, waving her hand at where Inuyasha was slowly drawing himself up, Sesshomaru draped over his back. His head rested on Inuyasha’s shoulder and Kagome was taken aback at how many facial features the pair actually had in common without the added assistance of Sesshomaru’s demon heritage. Again, she was reminded in just one of those small, oft ignored, ways that the pair were indeed brothers. 　　

  “Let’s get moving then, lady,” Inuyasha said, easily catching up with Tsukiko and matching her step for step as they all made their way back to the village, “you’ve got _a lot_ of explaining to do.”


End file.
